


Omega's Respite

by Diyami, GetMcDunkedOn



Series: Pheromones n Bones [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Abuse of Authority, Alcohol, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Alternate Universe - Fellswap (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underfell (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underswap (Undertale), Anxiety, Bad Asylum, Bad Mental Hospital, Baking, Breaking and Entering, Broken Bones, Cats, Childbirth, Childhood Trauma, Collars, Conditioning, Consensual Sex, Cooking Lessons, Depression, Don't worry the pregnancy is consensual I swear, Double Penetration, Drinking, Eating Disorders, Ecto-Genitalia (Undertale), Ecto-Penis (Undertale), Ecto-Tongue (Undertale), Ecto-Vagina (Undertale), Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Falling In Love, Fellswap Asgore & Fellswap Papyrus (Undertale), Fellswap Asgore & Fellswap Sans (Undertale), Fellswap Asgore (Undertale), Fellswap Muffet (Undertale), Fellswap Papyrus (Undertale) - Freeform, Fellswap Papyrus/Fellswap Sans/Underswap Sans (Undertale), Fellswap Sans (Undertale) - Freeform, Gang Rape, Gaslighting, Graphic Description, Haphephobia, Hearing Voices, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Childhood Sexual Abuse, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Intrusive Thoughts, Knitting, Leashes, Light Masochism, M/M, Marijuana, Marriage, Masochism, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Medical Torture, Medical Trauma, Medication, Minor Original Character(s), Mpreg, Non-Consensual Oral Sex, Non-Human Genitalia, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega Verse, Oral Sex, Original Character(s), Other, POV Alternating, Panic Attacks, Papyrus & Underfell Sans (Undertale), Papyrus is a Lawyer, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Past Incest, Past Rape/Non-con, Patricide, Political Campaigns, Political Lobbying, Politics, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Post-Undertale Pacifist Route, Power Imbalance, Pregnancy, Premature Labor, Psychological Trauma, Puppies, Rape, Rape Recovery, Rape/Non-con Elements, Recovery, Recreational Drug Use, Risky Behavior, Rough Oral Sex, Rough Sex, Sans/Underfell Sans (Undertale), Self-Destruction, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Harm, Self-Medication, Sibling Incest, Skeleton Pregnancy (Undertale), Skeleton Sex (Undertale), Skeletons Purr (Undertale), Smoking, Talk of Possible Miscarriage, Therapy, Torture, Transformation, Underfell Papyrus (Undertale), Underfell Papyrus/Underswap Papyrus (Undertale), Underfell Sans & Underfell Toriel (Undertale), Underfell Sans & Underswap Papyrus (Undertale), Underfell Sans (Undertale), Underfell Toriel (Undertale), Underswap Alphys & Underswap Sans (Undertale), Underswap Alphys (Undertale), Underswap Gaster (Undertale), Underswap Papyrus (Undertale), Underswap Sans (Undertale), Underswap Toriel (Undertale), Undertail, Undertale Monsters on the Surface, Undertale Skeletons in Heat, Unethical Experimentation, Victim Blaming, changing laws, child removal, collaring, dangerous pregnancy, lawsuit, presuicidal syndrome
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:08:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 21
Words: 128,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26853472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Diyami/pseuds/Diyami, https://archiveofourown.org/users/GetMcDunkedOn/pseuds/GetMcDunkedOn
Summary: Four AU’s have come to a happy ending on the surface. It is a new beginning for everyone, but Berry is haunted by his past that still clings to him and threatens to pull him back into the darkness, unknown to his now growing skeleton family. The newest skeletons are from the last set that surfaced: Fellswap. They are not going to let Berry be taken. Howl and Daemon, the two newest skeletons, have to dig into a horrible truth and show the world Berry’s past, and with the help of their fellow skeletons, they hope to make a better future for him and all other monsters.This is adapted from a role play with GetMcDunkedOn and me (Diyami). I hope you enjoy it.
Relationships: Alphys & Sans (Undertale), Asgore Dreemurr & Sans, Papyrus & Sans & Toriel (Undertale), Papyrus & Sans (Undertale), Papyrus & Toriel (Undertale), Papyrus/Papyrus (Undertale), Papyrus/Sans (Undertale), Sans & Sans (Undertale), Sans & Toriel (Undertale), Sans/Sans (Undertale)
Series: Pheromones n Bones [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2148276
Comments: 232
Kudos: 136





	1. Hey, Hey, I Said Hey, What's Going On?

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Nest(l)ing](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26583658) by [yastaghr](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yastaghr/pseuds/yastaghr). 

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Fellswap skeletons make a first impression.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to be putting tags in the beginning notes and proper summaries in the end notes of every chapter, so nobody gets surprised by something personally triggering! <3 Let me know if you read and there's something I missed.
> 
> Chapter tags: mild political discussion, talk of violence/murder/bones breaking, implications of sexual abuse,

The skeletons were getting ready for family game night. This was their first group meeting since the newest monsters came to the surface: Fellswap. The Fellswap brothers had met the Underfell monsters, and Vex - the tall Fell skeleton formerly a guard lieutenant and currently a ballet instructor - had extended the tradition that his mate, Stretch, and brother Blueberry had. He asked the newest skeletons to come to the family game night.

Vex was just carrying out a large tray of dinner, with a plate for each person. He had seasoned, roasted vegetables, two full chickens, and plenty of fluffy garlic rice. He scowled as his brother, Red, popped open his bottle of mustard, ready to sully all of that delicious and subtle flavoring, so perfectly layered, with a mess of his favorite condiment. That time-honored brotherly bickering began to start up between the two of them, as expected.

Berry was standing off to the side of the room watching the others. He twisted his gloved fingers, a nervous habit he had picked up over the years. He wasn't sure how to be useful. Before Vex came to live with them, he would cook and tried to offer a clean home and warm food for Stretch. Now Vex, who was a kind alpha, was providing for them. He kept the house clean. He cooked delicious meals. He made Stretch happy. So Berry was pushed to the side. It wasn’t his place to get in the way, he told himself. So when he heard a firm, rapid knock at the door, he was relieved to be useful. "I'LL GET IT." He went to open the door.

Standing there were two skeletons. Howl was in front, shorter but still a few inches taller than Berry. The high heeled boots helped. He looked regal, with his half-cape over his right shoulder. His armor had been taken off, however, replaced with a more formal military-uniform-looking outfit. His red gloves reached just past his elbows, but they were soft cotton. He looked Berry over with light blue eyelights, his scarred mouth set in an unimpressed sort of expression - though it was entirely neutral. The man had a serious case of resting bitch face. Daemon stood behind him, slouching slightly, an intimidating seven feet. He wore a collar, the leash attached to Howl's hand, and put on a lazy smile for Berry. His dark crop top showed off his midriff, glowing a dark green. "hiya," he said, lifting a hand to wiggle some fingers.

"YES, GREETINGS. THIS IS DAEMON, I AM HOWL. I PRESUME I'M AT THE CORRECT HOUSE FOR THIS... 'SKELETON FAMILY GAME NIGHT' MEETING."

Berry looked at the two in shock. Seeing the collar and leash made him unconsciously reach for his own collar. Luckily, his bandana stopped his hand short. He grabbed onto it and fidgeted with the blue cloth, making sure it covered his shame. Berry wondered what Daemon did to get the collar.

"HI," Berry said back to the tall skeleton, then he looked up at Howl. "YES, IT IS. WELCOME." Berry stepped back a little to let them pass.

Stretch was coming down from the top of the stairs. He was dressed in a warm large orange hoodie and cargo pants. His orange eyelights were shining happily. He had a glow about him with his gentle baby bump. "hey." He waved to the newcomers.

Howl stepped inside, still holding the leash, and Daemon followed him right in, ducking so as not to hit his head. The shorter of the two skeletons looked around. There were Red and Vex, the Fells he'd meet before. Red was five feet, a few inches yet taller than himself but still in the shorty club. He wore a comfy, fluffy black hoodie, a scar around his right eye, and a golden tooth gleaming on his left in his grin. Like in their previous meeting, the left hand and a floating red one were in use, while his right hand was tucked away in his jacket pocket as if hidden. His younger brother was tall - unreasonably so. The unnecessary high heels no doubt put him above eight feet, the bastard. He had a chunk missing from the right side of his chin, and his red gloves were crisp leather. His scarf was battered and threadbare in places, obviously well-loved. The shorter skeleton was snickering as he poured mustard all over the food, the taller groaning and rubbing his forehead. “HMM…" His gaze drifted on through the group.

There was another soft-looking skeleton next to Red, comfy in a blue hoodie and not a single scar on him. This one was holding a bottle of ketchup, presumably with which to commit a similar atrocity. Then, Howl looked up at the monster coming down the stairs. Also soft, like if his brother had flat teeth and no scars and couldn't kill a man in three seconds flat.

"INTERESTING," was what he finally said, going over to where everyone seemed to sit. Vex pulled out a chair for him and he sat, then beckoned his brother. Daemon followed along, leaning down to be at his brother's height, and felt the leash get undone. He smiled at his brother, winking, then took a seat next to him. "hey, vex? do you have... barbecue sauce~?"

Vex narrowed his eyes at him, but then huffed and retrieved yet another condiment to sully his perfect dinner.

"thanks, i really appreciate it~!"

"THE THINGS I DO IN THE NAME OF FAMILY." Vex also took his seat.

* * *

Berry was watching the other two and went closer into the living room. These two were so different. They were not like the others, these skeletons from Fellswap. They kind of reminded him of his brother and him a little. At least more than the others did. Unwanted memories were swimming in the small monster’s mind. Why was the taller wearing a collar? 'Was he bad like me?'

Stretch reached the bottom of the stairs and walked close to his brother and rubbed his head. "You okay Berry?" Berry noticed he was holding on to his bandana and tried to let go and pushed the questions and memories out of his mind. He nodded. Stretch took his brother's word and offered a kind smile.

Sans had taken a seat next to his datemate, Red, and shoved the sleeves of his blue hoodie up. He took his plate of food and took swigs of ketchup between bites. "good grub, vex" he said with his mouth full.

"THANK YOU," he replied. "I'M GLAD YOU APPRECIATE IT, EVEN IF YOU SULLY IT WITH KETCHUP. ALSO, PLEASE NEVER TALK WITH YOUR MOUTH FULL AGAIN." Red snickered and put more mustard on his food.

Stretch sat on Vex's lap, clearly claiming the space. "it's nice to meet ya. i'm stretch. you just met my brother blueberry, we call him berry for short.”

Vex seemed pleased with this arrangement. He filled up Stretch's plate more than the others. Extra food for an extra little soulling. He made a pleased noise, kissing Stretch's cheek.

"BERRY AND STRETCH. I SEE. A PLEASURE TO MAKE YOUR ACQUAINTANCE. I AM HOWL, THIS IS DAEMON. WE ARE VERY PLEASED TO BE HERE. ALSO, THE FOOD SMELLS VERY GOOD." He made a gesture to Daemon, who quickly made them each a plate. Howl took his and examined each bit of food. "HMM, I SEE. A GOOD BLEND OF SEASONING FOR THESE TYPES OF VEGETABLES... THE CHICKEN IS A VERY GOOD COLOR AND TENDERNESS..." He tried the rice. "AND NOT TOO MUCH GARLIC. VERY ADMIRABLE." Vex looked pleased with the praise.

"so you guys play games too, right?" Daemon asked as he plopped bbq sauce all over his plate.

"that's right. after dinner.” Stretch said. “we got some good games to choose from." He looked to Berry and frowned at him. Berry had yet to come over or get a plate. The orange-clad skeleton got up and made a plate for his older brother. "come sit down, berry."

Berry nodded and came over and took the seat that his brother had left the food at. It was a chair next to Howl and Daemon. "THANK YOU," he said quietly, trying not to draw too much attention to himself.

"cool, cool. i haven't played a lot of board games. i'm pretty good at blackjack, though." Daemon happily started to eat. "s'it okay if i smoke?"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT. YOU HAVE TO GO OUTSIDE FOR A SMOKE. NOTHING WILL JEOPARDIZE MY VERY EXCELLENT AND GORGEOUS CHILD-TO-BE." Vex placed a protective claw over Stretch’s middle.

"OH?" Howl looked interested. "YOU TWO ARE HAVING A CHILD? EXCELLENT. CONGRATULATIONS." He turned to look at Berry. "YOU WILL BE AN UNCLE. THAT'S EXCITING, IS IT NOT?"

Berry blushed, "YES, IT IS VERY EXCITING,” he said truthfully. He was an omega himself and having a child around... It was a lot of work to raise a child, and his brother was lazy, and even if Vex was a great and kind alpha, he would hopefully need help with a babybones. Blueberry hoped it would allow him to be good and make him feel less useless. “IT WILL BE NICE HAVING A CHILD IN THE HOUSE."

Stretch smiled. "i'm sure you will be a great uncle," he reassured his brother.

“IT CERTAINLY SOUNDS IT. HAVE YOU ALREADY PREPARED A NURSERY? STARTED KNITTING CLOTHES? I HAVE KNITTING PATTERNS I COULD SHARE WITH YOU."

Stretch laughed, "i don't know how to knit. as for the nursery, we haven't started it yet. still trying to agree on a theme." He gave Vex a kiss on the cheek. "vex just moved in a few days ago. we're still trying to settle in with that. by the way, how are you liking the surface?"

Sans interrupted. "have you gone to the observatory yet?" he asked, a little star-struck. "the star show is amazing."

Howl glanced over at the others. "THE SURFACE IS... INTERESTING. I'VE NO NEED TO VISIT AN OBSERVATORY, MY INTEREST LAYS ON THE PLANET WE LIVE ON."

"master's got ambitions," Daemon hummed. "he's gonna be a really important political figure. but for now, he's just working at the animal shelter with me."

"WOWZERS," Berry said. "DO YOU GET TO PLAY WITH THE ANIMALS?"

"yeah!" He perked up. "i get to give all the doggies their exercise outside! they love me! they're such good boys and girls, like me!" If he had a tail, it would be wagging. Red scoffed quietly, finishing up his own food. These guys were kinda weird even as far as fells went.

Berry looked to Daemon. "THAT IS SO COOL!"

Sans put his plate on Red's. "you're such a doll taking that to the kitchen."

"oh yeah, sure, my pleasure, sweetheart," Red said to his lover, giving him a kiss. He then promptly put both plates on Vex's. "you're such a doll taking that to the kitchen, bos- bro."

Vex rolled his pupils and gently nudged Stretch. "ALRIGHT, UP. I HAVE TO DO THE DISHES." He displaced Stretch and carried away the plates.

Sans looked to the gruff skeleton. "So Howl." He turned to see him better. "What kind of office are you looking for?"

"WELL, I'VE BEEN TOLD THAT HUMANS DON'T HAVE A KING OF THE WORLD, WHICH IS EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTING. SO IF I CAN'T GO FOR THAT, THEN... WHATEVER THE EQUIVALENT IS WILL DO."

"that would be president."

Howl nodded, then turned to look at Berry. "YOU SHOULD LEARN HOW TO KNIT. KNITTING IS VERY RELAXING."

Stretch got up and went to get the game. "Berry, that would be great for you to learn. You were always good with your hands and making things." He pulled out Apples to Apples, Sorry, Chinese checkers, a deck of cards, Uno, and Clue. Then he took them to the table. "As the newbies, you can pick which game we play first."

Berry twisted his phalanges a bit and thought about the offer. If he learned to do that, it would help the baby. Helping the baby would be good and he wanted to be good. That thought made his soul happy, being able to nurture that child.... 'IT WILL BE OKAY. AS LONG AS IT WASN’T MY CHILD RIGHT, RIGHT…? THAT WOULDN’T BE BAD...' He squeezed his fingers a bit harder and made up his mind. He smiled up at Howl. "THAT WOULD BE VERY NICE OF YOU. THANK YOU."

Howl looked back to Sans. "PRESIDENT. HMM. YES, I SEE. I SHALL KILL THE CURRENT PRESIDENT AND TAKE HIS PLACE. EXCELLENT." He glanced over at the games. "OH, THAT ONE." He pointed to Apples to Apples.

Red choked on his mustard and leaned against Sans, going red in the face. "dude! you don't kill people to take their jobs!"

"HOW ELSE ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO DO IT?" Howl asked.

"BY CAMPAIGNING AND MAKING PEOPLE LIKE YOU SO THEY'LL VOTE FOR YOU," Vex called from the kitchen.

Sans choked on his ketchup too. "didn't they tell ya at the meeting," he pointed at Red, "that killing is frowned upon here?"

Berry scooted down in his seat a bit. "..."

"HMM... THAT WILL TAKE LONGER…” Howl replied, “BUT I WILL DO WHAT I MUST."

Stretch looked over at Daemon. "don't let him do that."

Daemon shrugged and smiled. "he won't if that's not the way it works up here. don't worry. master only does things correctly!" He picked up the rule book to Apples to Apples and started to read it.

Red shrugged at Sans, capping his mustard. "their place seems even harsher than ours, i guess."

"sweetheart," He patted Red's face lovingly, "that is kinda an important rule to go over."

"i mean, i said no killing, i figured that was, y'know, all-encompassing!" Red huffed.

"well, no killing. It's best to bring them in so the Judges can decide what to do with them." Stretch picked up the Apples to Apples deck and started to shuffle.

"we didn't exactly have judges, though, stretch," Red pointed out.

"JUDGES?” Howl looked confused. “OUR QUEEN DECIDED WHO WAS GUILTY AND WHO WAS NOT. AND EVERYONE WAS GUILTY, IN HER MIND. THAT'S WHY SHE HAD TO GO DOWN."

"well the monarchs with the tale monsters have the final say-so, but they consult the Judge. they have been working together with all the undergrounds trying to make a common set of rules, but with all of them being so different and more undergrounds being discovered, it's been difficult," Sans told them.

"I SEE. IN ANY EVENT." He waved a hand dismissively. "I ASSUMED THAT RULE DIDN'T COUNT GOVERNMENTALLY-SANCTIONED KILLING, SUCH AS WHEN AN APPRENTICE TAKES ON THEIR MENTOR'S ROLE AND BECOMES A PROPER SUCCESSOR. BUT VERY WELL. I WILL RESEARCH 'CAMPAIGNING.'" He looked over to Berry. "ARE YOU QUITE ALRIGHT?"

Berry said quietly, "Yes, I'm glad you're willing to learn these new ways." He picked up his hand. "SO KNITTING, WHAT DO I HAVE TO FIND TO DO IT?"

"KNITTING IS QUITE SIMPLE AT ITS CORE. FOR REGULAR KNITTING, YOU NEED KNITTING NEEDLES AND YARN. OF COURSE, FINGER-KNITTING OR ARM-KNITTING DON'T REQUIRE NEEDLES. HOWEVER, IT IS GOOD TO KNOW HOW TO KNIT WITH NEEDLES, BECAUSE IT IS MORE VERSATILE!"

Vex came back into the room once all of the dishes were cleaned up and settled back in. Daemon perked up seeing everyone was back in the room as he finished examining the rules of the game. "oooh, this looks fun, master."

Stretch picked up his hand. "Yeah, this is a really fun game." He gave a quick explanation on the rules to everyone else. “We'll let Berry be the judge this first time, so you can see how it works, then go clockwise. That would make Howl the next judge.”

"OKAY,” Berry agreed and turned to look at Howl. “I'LL HAVE TO SEE WHERE I CAN GET SOME OF THE SUPPLIES. MAYBE NEXT WEEK’S GAME NIGHT YOU COULD START TEACHING ME?" Berry smiled.

"THAT WILL DO NICELY, YES. I WILL BRING MY OWN AND DEMONSTRATE."

Berry smiled and flipped over a card. "Fluffy."

The skeletons took a moment to look through the cards, and each one threw one out.

Stretch's card was 'Jupiter.' "It's full of fluffy air and gas."

Sans gave his card, 'Abraham Lincoln.' "Dude had a fluffy beard."

Howl thought for a moment, then set down a card, 'chickens.' "OBVIOUSLY, THIS IS THE BEST CHOICE."

Daemon put down 'bad haircut' with a grin.

Red huffed that he didn't have a funny answer, and just put down an easy one. 'Poodles.'

Vex thought for a moment himself, then selected one. "YES, THIS ONE. PERFECT." 'Strawberry shortcake.'

"HOW IS A 'STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE' FLUFFY?" Berry asked.

"THE TEXTURE, OF COURSE. HAVE YOU NEVER HAD ONE? IT'S A NICE SPONGE CAKE WITH WHIPPED CREAM AND STRAWBERRIES."

"can confirm,” Red replied, “i've made it before, pretty fluffy."

"NO," Berry shook his head, "I HAVEN'T." He looked at all the cards. "HHMMMMMMM, I WOULD HAVE TO CHOOSE.... CHICKENS. THE FEATHERS IN PILLOWS ARE SO SOFT AND CHICKENS HAVE FEATHERS," he said with a happy little sigh.

"EXCELLENT, OF COURSE I WIN! I AM AMAZING AT EVERYTHING. WHAT GAME NOW?"

"master,” Daemon said, “i think we do this several times until someone hits a certain number of points."

"OH."

"daemon’s right," Stretch said with a chuckle in his voice. "you're the judge this round, howl. take a green card and turn it over."

"I SEE. VERY WELL. I WON'T GO EASY ON ANY OF YOU." He turned over a green card. 'Inspirational.'

They all placed cards on the table.

Sans’s card was 'Vincent Van Gogh.' "i thought of some of my most inspirational ideas looking at starry night."

Berry’s card was 'fireworks.' "They are so pretty."

Stretch’s card was 'ballet.' He winked at Vex.

Vex blushed a little from Stretch's wink, flattered. He put down his own card. 'Music.'

Red grinned as he slapped his card down. 'Halloween.' "what's more inspirational than the day i was born, hehehe."

Daemon thought hard, before tentatively putting down a card. 'My family.' He looked up at Howl with a sweet, hopeful smile.

Howl examined all of the cards, feeling somewhat like a god picking a favored mortal. "HMM, I SEE. THESE ARE ALL QUITE GOOD, I THINK. EXCEPT FOR RED'S. HIS IS BAD."

"hey!"

"HOWEVER, THIS ONE IS ABOUT ME, SO I MUST PICK IT." He tapped Daemon's card.

Daemon squealed and beamed. "thank you, master~! i'm so happy!"

Berry beamed. "Family is a great choice."

Sans laughed. "it's okay red. I would have chosen halloween. a day of pulling pranks is a winner in my book."

Red beamed. "i know, right? i got the best birthday ever."

Stretch chuckled and plopped a sucker in his month.

"WHO GOES NEXT, THEN?" Vex asked. "YOU'RE SITTING NEXT TO HIM, DAEMON, SO YOU CAN GO IF YOU WANT TO."

"oh, okay!" The collared monster perked up and took a green card. He glanced over at Howl, then discreetly put it at the bottom of the deck to draw another one. With a smile, he put it down. 'Clumsy.'

Sans’s card was 'The Milky Way.' “Them silly rocks are falling out of there all the time.”

Stretch’s card was 'machine guns.' “No one can ever shoot those straight.”

Berry’s card was 'Jack the Ripper.' “Have you ever seen the mess he makes in the movie? Very clumsy.”

Sans looked dumbly at Berry.... Then he whispered to Red, "should we tell him the truth?"

Red looked at the card with shock. He whispered back to Sans. "i mean... yeah, probably?"

Sans pushed on Red’s arm. "go ahead."

"what? no. you do it." Red pushed back.

"I ain't going to tell him."

Vex shook his head at both of them. "AHEM. WELL. HERE IS MINE." 'Riding a scooter.'

Red huffed and put down his own. 'Tom and Jerry.'

Howl frowned at his cards, looking very dissatisfied. "HM. I DON'T SEEM TO HAVE AN APPROPRIATE CARD FOR THIS ONE... THIS WILL DO." 'French fries.'

Daemon looked at them all, humming quietly. "ummm... so i dunno this one..." He pointed to Berry's. "or this one..." He pointed to Red's. "so if i don't know them, i can't pick them... hmm... not this one..." He pushed away Stretch's. "mmm... not this one..." He pushed away Vex's. Then he looked between Sans's and Howl's.

"YOU KNOW WHICH ONE IS THE CORRECT CHOICE, PUPPY," Howl said confidently.

The taller brother looked over at Howl, hummed, then smiled and picked up Howl's. "this one, then~!"

"CHEATER," Vex accused.

Stretch patted his mate on the leg. Then turned to the collared monster. "daemon, how are french fries clumsy?"

Daemon shrugged with a goofy smile. "cause they're all different sizes and some are limp and some are stiff. i got a mega-long and super soft fry the other day! it looked cool but it fell apart."

Stretch smiled at Vex. "sounds legit to me."

"i could see rus saying that too," Sans added, "so i'm fine with it."

Berry nodded. "THEY ARE CLUMSY SHAPED AND THEY’RE DIFFERENT AT EVERY PLACE YOU EAT THEM."

A smug smile was on Howl's "PRECISELY! I WIN AGAIN."

"IT WAS DEFINITELY CHEATING," Vex sulked.

"aww, boss," Red comforted his brother, "don't be a sore loser."

Stretch snuggled up next to his upset mate. "would it make you feel better if you got to be the judge next?"

"I SUPPOSE."

* * *

Berry's answer was still bugging Sans, and it was clear Red wasn't going to be an alpha about it and tell Berry. He sighed. "fine i'll tell berry." He got up and went to whisper to him. "Berry…" he was a little nervous. “that murderer, jack... he wasn't clumsy. he was messy on purpose. he wasn't a good human."

Berry looked shocked. "BUT YOU CAN BREAK BONES AND STUFF WITHOUT HAVING A BIG MESS," he stated matter-of-factly.

Sans was shocked. "uumm, berry, how do you know...?"

Berry looked down at the ground. "WHEN I GOT BROKEN BONES, THE CLOTHES HELP KEEP IT FROM GETTING TOO MESSY. THERE WASN’T MARROW EVERYWHERE."

The room was quiet after that.

Berry squirmed in his seat. "I WILL MAKE EVERYONE POPCORN." He got up and escaped into the kitchen.

Red stared after Berry, shocked. Slowly, he got up to pull Sans back down onto the couch. "i think we should let it be for now, sweetheart..."

"so, um, who's... jack the ripper?" Daemon asked.

"A SERIAL KILLER WHO TARGETED PROSTITUTES, I THINK," Vex said. "A FEW CENTURIES AGO."

Howl hummed, crossing his arms and tapping them. After a long moment, he jerked his head to the kitchen. "PUPPY, GO CHECK ON HIM."

"yes, master." Daemon got up to hurry into the kitchen.

Stretch watched Daemon go to check on Blue. He was too shocked to think straight and grabbed tightly onto Vex's leg.

Berry tried to push the thoughts to the back of his mind. It was family night, he didn't want to think about it, about the past. It was a happy night. He brought a stool and a pot to the stove. Cooking always made him feel better, even if he wasn’t too good at it. Soon he was staring at the pan as he gently shook it, watching the kernels roll around, as past memories came unwanted. The more he tried not to think about it, the more they came to him.

The popcorn started to burn.

Daemon's hand reached out, but it didn't land on Berry. Instead, he put his hand on the counter next to the stove. "it's burning, berry," he said kindly. "are you okay?"

Blueberry jumped, eyelight widening. He wasn't expecting anyone in here. He tried to hold still, waiting to see if the hand would move. If it would give him the punishment he deserved. Punishments he had been reliving a few seconds ago. When the hand didn’t move to give him the punishment, the small monster said, "I SHOULDN'T HAVE PICKED THAT CARD. HURTING OTHERS LIKE THAT IS NOT CLUMSY. I KNOW BETTER..." Berry turned off the fire on the stove.

Daemon didn't move his hand, just rested it there, not touching. He smiled, though it looked a little sad. "why do you know better, berry? you said you've gotten broken bones... was it from accidents? or did someone hurt you?"

Fear started to creep into Berry’s soul and he retched under his blue bandana. On his vertebrae was a tight black collar with the mark of delta rune on it and his Sully name engraved on it. Proof of his rank - Blue was an unclean omega. If the others found out, would they start treating him like others from Underswap who know that he was a Sully? He didn’t want that. Stretch had gotten him used to the lie of being almost normal, he didn’t want them to know his shame. After all, he didn’t pry into Daemon’s collar. He didn't answer the question. He knew that was bad, but he chanced it. He grabbed the bowl on the table and emptied the pan, and went to pour more kernels into the pan. "I’M STILL LEARNING TO COOK.” He tried to push out all other thoughts and just focused on cooking the popcorn. “I’LL DO IT AGAIN. I'LL GET THIS RIGHT!” His hands were shaking.

"hold on." Daemon took the bowl, then picked through the popcorn a little and crunched down some of the burnt pieces. "crispy. don't worry about making more, i'm sure these will be pop-ular." He grinned.

Berry froze when Daemon made the joke. It took his scared mind a moment to catch it. But then he relaxed and smiled. His magic rushed to his face as he watched Daemon eat some of his food and enjoy it. His eyelights brightened a bit as he thought of a reply and his hands became steady as he turned around to look at Daemon. “THAT WAS A BAD JOKE. I SHOULD CHARGE YOU WITH A-SALT AND BUTTER-Y.”

Daemon laughed aloud, a happy sound almost like a bark. He held out his hand, an offering. "come on, the next round is gonna start. i bet you'll win."

Berry looked at the hand longingly. 'DON'T DREAM... DON'T WANT. IT'S BAD,' he told himself. 'IT CAN ONLY BE FRIENDSHIP. SULLY CAN’T HAVE MORE.' He took a deep breath and twisted his fingers, conflicted, Daemon was nice. He told himself, ‘I’M NOT AT THE SANITARIUM.' He repeated it a few times in his mind. ‘I LEARNED MY LESSON. I’M A GOOD OMEGA NOW. PAPY TOOK ME AWAY.’ His hands were shaking again. He was going to stay good. He slowly placed his shaking hand on Daemons.

Daemon was patient, letting Berry take his time. But he smiled when Berry's hand was placed on his, and he squeezed it gently. His hand was warm, warmer than most monster's. And something filled the air between the two of them, a faint scent, sharp but not aggressive. Like a promise to protect.

Berry's own scent came as an unwanted reply. He quickly suppressed it, but he couldn't stop himself from the presentation of his neck and of his collar, as he raised his head back to be bit. He was Sully. It had been beaten into him to present to be used. He had no right to say 'no.' Luckily, the bandana Stretch gave him had covered the unwanted collar. It took a few seconds for him to realize that Daemon's scent smelled strong, protective, and loyal. Like a good alpha, like Vex. Daemon wasn't demanding sex...

Slowly, he straightened his head.

Daemon took in the soft Omega scent and noticed how Berry tilted his head, as if presenting his neck. The bandana covered it, but the gesture was easily recognized. Still, he only smiled, squeezing again. He then guided Berry back into the living room. The smaller monster was gently put down where Daemon had sat before, and Daemon took his seat, putting Berry solidly in between himself and Howl. He put the bowl down after stealing another burnt kernel. Howl raised his brow a little at Daemon's little game of musical chairs, but didn't protest. He merely slid his gloves off, folding them carefully, so he could delicately pluck a piece of popcorn. "NOW THEN, SHALL WE KEEP PLAYING? I'M CERTAIN I'M GOING TO WIN."

Red was nuzzling into Sans's neck, bored while waiting and just teasing his boyfriend a little promising kisses.

"VERY WELL. CEASE YOUR PDA, BROTHER." Vex waved his hand. "AND THANK YOU FOR THE POPCORN, BERRY."

Berry blushed at his new seat between the brothers. "YOU'RE WELCOME."

Stretch looked at Berry for a few seconds before saying, "you okay, bro?"

Sans gave a quick kiss to Red. "fine." He picked up his cards. He nuzzled his boyfriend. “red, you're the apple of my eye.”

Red grinned and nuzzled back, delighted. "well, i apple-solutely love ya too, sweetheart."

Vex groaned irritably. "IF YOU TELL ONE MORE APPLE-RELATED JOKE I'M GOING TO BURY THIS GAME IN THE BACKYARD AND YOU'LL NEVER FIND IT."

"I ONLY HAVE SO MUCH PATIENCE," Howl agreed with an exasperated noise.

Stretch gave Vex a little peck on the cheek. "they're just apple-ling your leg."

"NOT YOU TOO." Vex groaned. "I LOVE YOU AND CARE FOR YOU AND GIVE YOU CHILD AND YOU PUN AT ME."

Sans snickered at the joke. "wasn't my joke," he said, making Red giggle, sorting through his cards.

Daemon giggled too, then smiled at Berry. "he was a little upset a bit of the popcorn got burnt," he told Stretch. "i told him s'okay, though. i like the burnt pieces."

The short skeleton looked down shyly. “I'LL TRY AGAIN LATER," he said. "I LIKE COOKING. I WATCH A LOT OF THE FOOD CHANNEL…" The magic rushed to his face making him look like his namesake as he admitted his passion. "I… WANT TO LEARN TO COOK BETTER," he added a little more quietly. He then smiled at Daemon.

Stretch was amazed. This was one of the first things in a long time that his brother had said he wanted to do. "there is a class at the community center," he suggested. "we could sign you up for them.”

"That would be great, Berry," Sans agreed. "It would be fun gettin' to know new people and making some friends."

"oh!" Daemon said excitedly. "that's a great idea! right, master?"

"YES, I CONCUR. EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW HOW TO COOK WELL, IN MY PERSONAL OPINION. COOKING IS FUN, RELAXING, AND REWARDING. IT IS AN ART FORM. A GOOD DISH IS LIKE A GOOD OPERA."

Stretch smiled at his brother. "come on bro, we've been up here a year. you can find a little happiness too."

Sans said, "rus said that the buses around here are really good. i'm sure the one over here would go right past the center. It's not that far away. some of the kids in my classes take workshops there."

Blueberry looked at his family and adjusted his bandana. He would do anything for his brother. If this made Stretch happy, he would try it. It was a good omega's job to make others feel good, after all. "OKAY."

"GOOD. AND IF FOR SOME REASON, THE BUSES DON'T WORK OUT, I'M SURE SOMEONE WILL BE WILLING TO DRIVE YOU. I, MYSELF, AM DUE TO TAKE MY DRIVER'S TEST VERY SOON." Howl put a hand to his chest, all self-importance. "I WILL, OF COURSE, PASS WITH FLYING COLORS AND GET MYSELF A VEHICLE BEFITTING OF MY MAGNIFICENT STATUS."

Daemon giggled softly and beamed at Berry. "we look forward to your cooking!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Summary: The Fellswap brothers come to their first skeleton family game night. Berry notices Daemon has a collar and wonders if it means the same as his own. Howl discusses how it was tradition to kill your mentor as a graduation from apprenticeship, and that he will become the ruler of the world - even if he must use the correct political methods instead. Daemon subtly skips a card in Apples to Apples, looking discreetly at his brother. Berry mentions that it's clumsy to kill or break bones messily, because it can be done neatly. When questioned, he flees to the kitchen. Daemon follows and tries to reassure him, and Berry thinks of when his purpose was to be 'used' in the Sanitarium, but lets himself be brought back to everyone else. Berry mentions wanting to learn how to cook, and everyone persuades him to take classes at the local community center.


	2. I'm Searching for a Paradise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which food is learned one night and made the next morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're hoping to stick to a once a week schedule with updating. We've got a few more chapters already done, so, it shouldn't be much trouble to keep up!
> 
> I'm putting links to my (GetMcDunkedOn) pictures of my four characters in the end notes here in this chapter, since they're not the typical fanon-compliant boyos.
> 
> I hope you are enjoying this story! Let us know in the comments! 💙  
> Thank you all in advance!
> 
> Chapter tags: mention of rape and conditioning, brief mention of breaking bones, mild symptoms of undereating disorder

Today was the big day: Berry’s first day of class. Stretch was going to take the bus with him, to make sure it wasn't too scary. Berry went over the list they had gotten from the center and made sure he had the supplies that were on this paper. He neatly put the supplies in the bright blue shoulder bag Howl had given him.

"WHAT ELSE DO I NEED FOR SCHOOL?" Berry tried to remember, but the last time he had gone to a classroom had been before his father disappeared. He could only think of some pencils and a notepad to add to the list that the center had given them.

"you almost ready to head out, bro?" Stretch waddled into Blue's room. A sad smile formed as he looked at the very clean and neat room. He had been trying to get Berry to add some personal touches to it. Stretch had even gone out and got big fluffy pillows and soft bedding with little stars all over it, yet that all sat as neat and untouched as the day Stretch got them. Only the very corner of the thin, rough old sheet peeked out from under the bed. It was where Berry preferred to sleep. 

The shorter skeleton looked up from his desk and saw his brother bending over to pick up the sheet. The small monster reached out and just barely stopped himself from asking for it not to be taken. His younger brother tried so hard to take care of them. Berry felt it wasn't his place to make a request.

Stretch sighed and put the blanket on the bed. He came up to Berry and knelt in front of him and gently lifted his face. "big bro, you don't have to sleep on the floor. you're allowed nice things. i have told you that many times."

Shame filled Berry, and he looked away. His brother had been trying for years to get him to sleep in the bed. It was soft, comfortable, and too tempting to nest in. He had learned painfully many years ago that Sully were not allowed the safety of nesting. It physically hurt to try to lay in it, his body remembering all the lessons. Berry pulled back and looked down at the floor.

Frustration fueled the younger skeleton. "look at me," Stretch said firmly.

Berry's head snapped back up, eyelights going a bit wide. Memories of the Sanitarium overlapped with his brother's command. He started to tremble.

"i… i…" Stretch stood up, regretting his sharp tone instantly. "look, sans. i'm sorry. i love you. i won’t hurt you."

Berry hugged himself, looking at the floor. It was safer to look at the floor. "I KNOW."

"then why do you look at me like that?"

"..."

"berry, it's been three years. i saved you. i protected you. what else can i do?” Stretch was at his wit’s end. “i want the old berry back. the one who would take care of me. protect me. my big brother." Tears were streaming down Stretch's face. "you were happy and would sing and dance to make me laugh." He used his sleeve to wipe his face. "please tell me. what do i need to do?"

Berry had nothing to say. He had tried for the last three years to pretend that he was good. That he was useful in some way to the only person who cared for him. He just looked at the ground. He would do anything for his younger brother, but his old self was gone. There was nothing he could do.

"by the angel, i need a smoke." Stretch reached into his hoodie and pulled out a sucker, and quickly his hands fell into the smooth movements of pretending it was the cigarette he desperately wanted. "blueberry, i'm sorry. it's just a blanket… if it makes you happy… keep it." The pregnant monster stopped with his hand on the doorknob. "i'm glad you're trying it. It's just hard to handle this," he waved his hands around, "right now." He went out the door. "vex will drive you to class today."

Berry sat in silence and thought, ‘I am well aware that I am just a Sully now. A useless blight on the world of Underswap. I'm a temptress and unclean omega. I had broken the rules. I went outside during his heats, ~~to search for food, but that didn't matter.~~ There was no excuse for my sin. I had tempted Alphas and Betas that were bonded. I am bad. It was my fault they raped me. I am Sully and made the world unclean.’

The Sully was the reason for the overpopulation. They were the cause of the lack of resources, always having children. Once the guards found out you were unclean, you were sent to the Sanitarium and they made sure you knew your place. They were experts on making Sully useful members of society. If you were taken from the Sanitarium, you were not the same monster that went in.

Berry sat at the desk. His thoughts were voiced aloud. "I'M SULLY. I'M BAD. MY ONLY REASON TO LIVE IS TO MAKE OTHERS FEEL GOOD. ITS THE ONLY USE FOR ME." The words seemed to bounce off the walls of the mostly empty room. “I HAVE TO BE GOOD. I WANT TO BE GOOD.”

He turned and looked at the soft, pretty bed his brother had given him. It would make a wonderful nest. He wanted to make Stretch happy, but…

"I'M NOT ALLOWED A NEST."

He was taking a big risk sleeping under it, stealing touches, and savoring the softness whenever he dared. 

Berry wiped at his sockets in frustration. 

By the Angel, he wanted to sleep in it, to an omega a house wasn't a home without one. He hadn't felt at home since long before the Sanitarium. Before he was collared. But having a nest would lead to feeling safe. Safety led to children. Children lead to overpopulation, so he couldn't sleep in it. It was against the rules. He might be taken back if anyone ever found out.

There was a careful knock at the door. "BERRY? WE HAVE TO GO, OR YOU'LL BE LATE."

Blueberry jumped. He didn't want to go anymore, but he would make the others sad if he didn't go. Daemon, Howl, Sans, Red, and Vex all had said how they wanted him to try it. Reluctantly, he grabbed the strap and walked to the door.

Vex walked with him out to the car. "BERRY," he asked as he opened the passenger door (like a gentleman), "WHAT WERE YOU AND STRETCH TALKING ABOUT?"

The upset skeleton gripped the strap of his bag hard. "The bed." Then Berry shook his head and corrected, "no, my blanket."

"I SEE." Vex started the car and they were off. Despite the flashiness of his convertible, he was a very careful driver. He kept his gaze on the road, one finger tapping the steering wheel slowly. He wanted to press. Neither of the swap brothers talked much about problems. He could understand. Truly, he could. Emotions were hard. But... It wouldn't be fair to press. He would probably scare Berry, and that was the last thing he wanted to do. So instead, he changed the subject. "DO YOU HAVE EVERYTHING YOU NEED? YOUR PHONE? YOUR SUPPLIES? A NOTEBOOK AND PENCIL?"

"I THINK SO." Berry nodded, glad for the change in topic. He pulled the list out that the employee at the center gave them. "I GOT ALL THE SUPPLIES ON THE LIST AND EXTRA STUFF." He fumbled around in the bag and pulled out his phone to show it to Vex. "THE BAG HOWL GAVE ME HAS A LITTLE SPOT FOR MY PHONE SO IT DOESN'T GET LOST IN THE BIGGER AREA." He smiled and ran his phalanges over the bag. It was a beautiful, yet sturdy bag. Way better than a Sully like him should be carrying. He had tried to give it back, but Howl wouldn't hear of it. He said it would be wasting resources if Berry didn't use it. So Berry had to take it. He did love the bright blue color of the soft cloth. He put the phone and papers back.

"GOOD, YES, THAT'S GOOD. I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT." He only glanced over at a red light. "HOW CONVENIENT. MAKE SURE YOU TEXT IF YOU NEED SOMETHING, AND IT'LL BE BROUGHT TO YOU. SOMEONE WILL PICK YOU UP, SO DON'T LEAVE ON YOUR OWN."

Berry nodded. "OKAY." When they arrived, Berry started to get out of the car. "I'LL WAIT HERE AFTER CLASS. THANK YOU." He gently closed the door and headed into the class.

Berry entered the building and went to the room that Stretch had shown him when they first came to sign him up. There were a few other monsters and some humans. Blue spent the next hour taking notes and learning the basics before really cooking. It was fun and informative and his peers seemed nice. The teacher even gave them many recipes on the topic of the class: Boiled eggs.

Soon he was standing at the doors of the closing center. "Night, Berry." The last of his classmates left towards the parking lot.

"GOOD NIGHT!" he said excitedly.

Red popped into view only a few minutes later. "sup, blue dude? how was the class?"

Berry had a smile on his face. "it was really good."

"cool, glad to hear it. let's getcha home." He rested a hand on Berry's shoulder and, with a quick snap of magic, they were inside the swap house. "vex said dinner's in the fridge. your bro went to bed early."

Berry's smile wasn't very bright when he heard that. "OKAY. THANK YOU FOR COMING TO GET ME."

"yeah, no problem. so, uh... is everything okay?" He rubbed at the back of his neck a little.

"YES," he said, not meeting Red's eye. 'DON'T BE MORE OF A BURDEN,' he told himself. "I'M GOING TO GO TO MY ROOM."

Red frowned a little. He wanted to press but... Well, they all had their secrets. Red was no hypocrite. "alright. well, call if you need anything." He was gone in the next second, back to Sans's house.

The depressed skeleton wasn't hungry. He sighed at the empty room. His excitement quickly fell as he climbed the stairs. Berry put the bag on the desk and ran his hand down the side. It was suede leather. Wonderfully soft, yet sturdy, it was more than he deserved. The Fellswap brothers shouldn't have wasted resources like this on him.

His phone suddenly rang.

The noise scared him; it hardly ever rang. He looked at the ID: Howl. It was almost like this thought had summoned the call. He almost dropped the phone as he fumbled to answer it.

"H-HELLO, THIS IS BLUEBERRY."

"HELLO, BLUEBERRY, THIS IS HOWL." There was the gentle, rhythmic sound of clicking wooden needles as he knit on the other end. "I'M GLAD YOU ANSWERED. HOW WAS THE CLASS? WHAT DID YOU MAKE? TELL ME ALL ABOUT IT."

Berry blushed and sat in the chair of his desk. A warm, happy feeling filled his soul.

"IT WAS REALLY INTERESTING. WE LEARNED THE BASICS. HOW TO BOIL WATER FOR COOKING. YOU HAVE TO MAKE IT REALLY SALTY..." 

"YES, THAT IS CORRECT. SALTING WATER FOR BOILING IS IMPORTANT," Howl replied. 

Berry smiled. "THEN WE BOILED EGGS. THERE ARE SOFT OR HARD BOILED." Once he started talking it just kept coming out. It was so fulfilling learning to cook. His instincts wanted him to show off what a good nurturing monster he would be, and cooking was letting him fill that instinct without guilt. His blush got deeper as he indulged the feeling. 

"BOILED EGGS WAS THE FOCUS FOR THIS ONE CLASS. WE MADE 3 RECIPES IN CLASS AND THE TEACHER GAVE US SOME OTHER RECIPES THAT ALL HAVE BOILED EGGS IN THEM."

Howl listened carefully. ”THAT'S GOOD, YES. AND YOUR PEERS? HOW WERE THEY?"

"THEY ARE NICE. THERE WERE JUST A FEW MONSTERS, BUT LOTS OF HUMANS. ONE OF THEM FOUND ME A STOOL TO USE. "

"I'M GLAD,” Howl said. “I DON'T KNOW MUCH ABOUT THE HUMAN MASSES BUT I'M PLEASED THEY ARE BEING FRIENDLY. DID YOU TAKE PLENTY OF NOTES?"

Berry nodded, before remembering he was on the phone. He smacked his hand into his skull. "I DID. I'M SURE THEY WILL COME IN HANDY IF I MAKE THE OTHER RECIPES."

"YES, EXCELLENT. I AM VERY PROUD OF YOU FOR GOING. I EXPECT YOU TO KEEP GOING. I LOOK FORWARD TO TRYING YOUR COOKING. DAEMON DOES AS WELL."

Berry's soul skipped a beat at the praise, and the next few beats felt louder. He was almost sure Howl would hear it over the phone. His face colored more. Berry was sure he looked like a neon sign as he thought how Howl was looking forward to his cooking and wanted Daemon to try it too! "AS YOU WISH," he said shyly.

"VERY WELL. I WILL SEE YOU AT THE NEXT FAMILY GAME NIGHT. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE SUPPLIES TO LEARN HOW TO KNIT."

"ALRIGHT. I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING YOU BOTH..." 

He caught himself. The voice in the back of his mind was telling him that he was being bad. No one was going to keep a Sully whore. He was only good at tempting good, clean monsters. He didn't want to make them unclean like him. 'DON'T DREAM FOR MORE. IT WILL HURT ALL OF US.'

"TO KNIT. TO LEARNING TO KNIT. THANK YOU FOR CALLING."

He didn't want to make them dirty too. His hand went to his collar as he thought about that.

Darmon had a collar. He was on a leash. He wanted to ask about that, but he couldn't. Berry didn't want to talk about his collar, surely Daemon didn't want to either.

"WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU AS WELL. SLEEP WELL." Howl hung up.

Berry sat looking at the phone for a bit. He tried to push the thoughts and voice away. 

The small skeleton collected his pjs and bath stuff. He went into the bathroom and got ready for bed.

Soon he was curled up with his old blanket under the bed. The safety of a nest above him within reach. His shaking hand stole small touches of undeserving comfort. 

It was bad of him, but it was one of the only things that calmed the screaming of his instincts to let him sleep with a little bit of peace. Though it always fell into memories ~~lessons learned~~ of the Sanitarium. Old breaks in his bones ached with the memories. He pulled his hand away. But even the old aches didn't stop the warmth his soul felt from talking with Howl.

The next morning, Berry made sure to wake up early. He crawled out from under the bed and folded the old sheet, making sure it was hidden well today. His soul still felt warm thinking of his phone call with Howl.

Berry wondered aloud as he got dressed, “WOULD PAPY WANT TO TRY A RECIPE TOO? THE CLASS WAS HIS IDEA.” The small monster nodded to himself. Cooking had always made his soul feel better. Hopefully, it would make Papy happy. He grabbed his notepad and hugged it as he thought of his plan. 

With fast, light footfalls and notepad in hand, Blueberry moved quietly. He crept down the stairs, avoiding the squeaky one. He slunk through the cupboards to find a pot and pan, then got to work boiling eggs.

Once the eggs were started, he read the recipe again. It was one of the harder ones, but he was filled with determination. It was something he hadn’t felt in a long while.

He would make this for his brother and Vex. “HOPEFULLY IT WILL BE ENOUGH TO MAKE YOU FEEL BETTER, STRETCH.” He couldn’t stop the voice in the back of his mind that said, ‘STRETCH HAS MORE IMPORTANT THINGS TO WORRY ABOUT THAN ME.’ Berry’s hands shook a little, but he carried on with this work. 

Soon the soothing motion of peeling and preparing the eggs calmed his soul. 'I’M THE BIG BROTHER… ~~AND OMEGA~~. I’M SUPPOSED TO TAKE CARE OF YOU.' He took out the salt, butter, flour, milk, and bread. 

Berry added ingredients, watching them transform into something new and better. The butter melted and mixed with the milk, making a thick sauce. He took the now chopped eggs and added them to the creamy sauce. Then he added a pinch of salt. His soul was shining with joy as he looked at the pan.

Cooking for his family was fulfilling in a way that was hard to explain. Berry’s instincts told him to find a clean, safe home, to nest, and to feed and nurture his family. Even if Berry had painfully learned that he was unclean and nowhere was safe, it was still okay to feed his family… to cook for them. It was one of the only instincts he had left to indulge. It was blissful when he did and learning the new recipes in the class made him feel even better. Maybe he could transform the same as the food transformed and got better? He was imagining his family happy and full because of him, he was able to nurture them, and it made his soul feel wonderful and gave him a little boost of HoPe. 

The toast popped up and he put it on the two plates and carefully spooned the creamed eggs over the toast. He spent a few moments wiping the edges of the plate like they did on the TV shows, to make the plates look as pretty as he could. He read the notepad. The teacher had said a pinch of paprika was good with eggs. He climbed up on the counter and looked through the cupboards and found his prize.

Berry smiled as he looked at the food. It looked good to him. The short monster placed the plates on a tray with two cups of milk and made his way back up the stairs and to the new couple’s room. He gave the bedroom door a small knock.

After a few seconds, the door opened. Vex already looked plenty awake, as he always did, seeing how little sleep he tended to get. "BERRY?" he asked, a little surprised. "WHAT IS IT?"

Berry held the tray up. "I MADE YOU TWO BREAKFAST. " He fidgeted under Vex's gaze, hoping he didn’t overstep by making the food. 

The tall Fell skeleton looked down at the tray, frowning a little. There were only two plates, and he'd noticed that Berry hadn't eaten his dinner left in the fridge. It seemed to be a pattern, judging by the few days he'd lived here. "WHAT ABOUT YOURS, BERRY?"

The smaller monster looked down at the floor. He hadn’t expected Vex to say that. Only Stretch ever noticed him skipping meals. He said, “I'M NOT TOO HUNGRY. I’LL EAT LATER.”

“nah, we can share.” Stretch yawned and sat up in the bed.

Vex glanced back at his mate, then stepped aside and let Berry in. That would have to do for now. He took a seat at his desk, where his computer and litany of rubik's puzzles were housed.

Berry walked over to Vex and handed him a plate and a cup of milk. "I HOPE IT MEETS YOUR STANDARDS."

He took the plate and milk and examined what Berry had made. It seemed pretty decently done. He took up a piece of toast. "I AM CERTAIN IT WILL BE," he said, a bit of gentleness to his voice.

Berry smiled happily at the gentleness in Vex's voice. He walked over to Stretch and put the tray in his lap.

Stretch looked at the white lumpy toast and tried to keep his skepticism hidden. “what ya make bro?”

“IT’S CALLED, ‘CREAMY HARD BOILED EGGS.’” Berry squeezed his fingers and held his breath, waiting to see their reactions.

“Looks _egg_ -cellent,” Stretch giggled to himself and scooped up a piece of toast.

"PUNS MAKE ANYTHING TASTE SOUR," the Fell skeleton complained, but he also started to eat.

Stretch chuckled. "i hate to _sour_ this special meal, so i'll be good." He picked up one of the pieces of toast and took a bite. "It's really good, bro."

Berry's soul felt light and happy. His eyes did something at that moment, something Stretch hadn’t seen since before that day Blue went missing all those years ago. Blueberry’s eyelights had turned into stars.

Stretch almost choked on the food. “berry...” The pregnant skeleton smiled and took a bite of the food. “i’m so proud of you, bro. it's delicious. thank you!” He handed the plate with the other pieces to Berry. "eat, bro."

Berry twisted his phalanges a few moments, before reaching out and taking the plate. "OKAY." He started to eat the toast. It was really good.

Vex saw the way his eyelights changed shape and felt something warm in his soul. He'd never seen that on Berry before. He was used to seeing those stars in Red's eyes when he spoke of space and the stars, but this was brand new to Berry. And Stretch looked so happy about it. It made it so stark, so obvious how depressed Berry was. Knowing Red's own depression, knowing how he still fought, knowing how he was getting better, little by little (especially living with Sans)... It wasn't his place. Berry wasn't his brother. But he couldn't help but try to do what he could. "YOU SHOULD SERVE SOME FOOD AT THE NEXT FAMILY GAME NIGHT, BERRY. I'M SURE EVERYONE WOULD LOVE IT."

The short skeleton looked over to Vex in shock. Vex usually made the main dishes. Vex was the alpha of the house. He couldn't. Vex, such a good alpha, always was providing dinner and it made Vex happy. "BUT YOU LIKE TO COOK THEM…" He took a timid step back. "I COULDN'T..."

"THAT IS TRUE, BUT I WORK EVERY WEEKDAY, SO I DON'T HAVE A LOT OF TIME TO COOK FOR SO MANY PEOPLE," he reasoned. He knew he was capable, but that wasn't the point. "IT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL TO ME, AND I THINK EVERYONE WOULD REALLY ENJOY IT."

Berry's felt so happy. 'I CAN BE USEFUL. NOT JUST A BURDEN.' 

~~Monsters like you are a burden to monsterkind, but at least, you are good for one thing.~~ He shivered and tried to ignore the voice. 

'I'M NOT BEING BAD...I'M BEING USEFUL. GOOD. I'LL HELP NURTURE FAMILY,' Berry told himself. Then it dawned on him. "DAEMON AND HOWL WILL TRY MY COOKING…."

Stretch's eyelights glinted knowingly. "yeah, bro they can try your delicious cooking too."

A light blue blush bloomed on Berry's skull. He told himself, 'I'M DIRTY, BUT I COULD STILL COOK FOR THEM…IT WOULD BE...'

"OKAY..."

He practically ran out of the room.

Vex watched him go, then turned back to his mate. "HE LOOKS HAPPY. MAYBE THIS IS JUST WHAT HE NEEDS?"

"i think so. He hasn't looked that happy for a very long time," Stretch said, nodding.

"YES? AND... HOW LONG AGO WAS IT?"

Stretch thought about it hard. "Before he...." His smile fell. "6-ish years ago."

He caught that. "BEFORE HE WHAT?" he asked, that same gentleness and care in his voice as when he'd complimented Berry's cooking.

Stretch paled at that. ‘damn, he’s observant,’ he thought and looked away. ‘what else should i expect from the ex-lieutenant of the guard?’ He shook his head. "berry doesn't like to talk about it."

"I CAN UNDERSTAND THAT... THAT'S WHY I'M ASKING YOU INSTEAD."

Stretch had hoped that would have been the end of the conversation. "look, i'm sure none of us had the best childhoods. blueberry did his best and it was damn good," he said hotly. "it wasn't his fault no matter what the laws say." The pregnant monster wiped at the tears gathering in his sockets. "i should have gone out looking for food, not him, but we were both too young to understand the danger." He was done talking now, he couldn't stop crying.

The Fell monster listened in confusion, and some measure of horror. Something terrible had happened. Berry had gone out for food, and... something happened to him. But the laws pinned it on him. It could be anyone. Someone could've died. He could've been... hurt, somehow. Hurt badly. Traumatized. And they said it was his fault... The terrible train of thought was put aside, however, in the wake of Stretch's tears. He put his empty plate aside and got onto the bed, pulling Stretch into his arms. Hugs weren't his strong suit, but damn if he wouldn't try his best. "ALRIGHT," he said quietly. "YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY ANYTHING MORE. I'M SORRY."

Stretch folded into his mate's hold. He let himself cry long and hard. It made him feel a little better. Vex was amazing holding him in strong arms. His tears came to a stop as he fell asleep, feeling safe in Vex’s arms.

Vex held Stretch until his pregnant lover fell asleep, just letting him cry. He absently pet Stretch's head a little, like Red did for him when they were children and he was upset. Like he did when comforting Red from a nightmare underground. His gaze was set off in the distance, thinking. He knew a terrible truth now... Something he couldn't just go around sharing with the others, either. A dark secret. He didn't like keeping secrets... But he vowed to do everything he could to help Berry in subtle ways. His mate's brother would be happy again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary: Stretch notices Berry only sleeps on a blanket on the floor, gets a little snappy and regrets it when Berry looks afraid. Berry thinks about how he is dirty and useless and only wants to be good. Vex struggles with how to ask what's going on and how he can help. Berry has a good first class, but is sad when he comes home and hears his brother went to bed early. Howl calls and talks with him about class, which cheers Berry up. In the morning, Berry makes breakfast and brings it up to Vex and Stretch. Vex notices Berry didn't make himself any, but Stretch shares his. They suggest Berry cook for family game night one time, and he is happy. Vex asks Stretch what happened to Berry, and figures out something very bad happened to him 6 years ago.
> 
> Thanks for reading! Have a look at my boys!
> 
> [ Red (reference page, ignore the missing hand, he still has it)](https://starsgivemehp.tumblr.com/post/165027960916/ahhhh-streams-over-thanks-to-victoryhound)
> 
> [ Vex (dancing ballet and playing his violin)](https://starsgivemehp.tumblr.com/post/175860870536/vex-stop-playing-shatter-me-already-gawd-i-get)
> 
> [Howl (in full armor)](https://starsgivemehp.tumblr.com/post/631796625694687232/somehow-i-cant-find-this-on-the-blog-so-i-guess)
> 
> [ Daemon (sadly smoking while his brother is gone)](https://starsgivemehp.tumblr.com/post/631796926679056386/i-know-i-did-put-the-original-of-this-pic-up)


	3. Hello, I am the Lie, Living for You so You Can Hide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which one unfortunate happening leads to a domino effect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter! Please leave a kudos and a comment letting us know what you think and what you hope will happen. We would love to hear from you! <3
> 
> Chapter notes: mention of the Sully conditioning, graphic non-con at the end of the chapter (note that I will separate it out with a very clear indicator for you to skip if need be)

It was family game night again.

Berry had a set of knitting needles and a ball of yarn he got at the 99 plus cent store. He had been quite enchanted by the place. The tiny plus on the sign should have been bigger, much bigger. The yarn was definitely in the plus part.

The lady in the store had said babies need special soft yarn. ‘That must be true,’ he had thought while looking through the limited colors; his instincts told him soft things were best for babies and nesting, so he had paid the plus price. Currently, the fruits of his adventure were waiting in the living room, awaiting Howl’s instruction. His soul buzzed with excitement thinking about spending time with the skeleton.

Now, Berry was making dinner. He had agonized all week on what to make. He wanted to make something delicious, yet practical. Eventually, he had decided on egg salad sandwiches. He had cut them up into small pieces. They would be easy to eat while they played games, and it was one of the recipes he got from the class, so it showed off his new skills he had told Howl about. The small monster had made sure the sandwiches were all perfectly cut. He wouldn't let Daemon or Howl down with ‘clumsy’ shapes. He also eagerly cut up some fruit and veggies to serve with the sandwich.

When he finished, he just stood on the stool, rocking on the balls of his feet. He daydreamed as he looked at the large tray of food he had worked so hard on.

Vex came into the kitchen and gave the food a good looking over. "THAT ALL LOOKS VERY GOOD, BERRY. LET'S PUT IT IN THE FRIDGE UNTIL WE'RE READY FOR IT."

Berry twisted his phalanges. "THANK YOU. I HOPE THEY LIKE IT." He took the plate and put it in the fridge. He was so nervous-cited, the little skeleton was practically vibrating with anticipation.

"EVERYTHING WILL GO FINE," Vex promised. "WHY DON'T YOU GO AHEAD AND SET UP THE GAMES WHILE I WAKE YOUR LAZYBONES BROTHER?" Berry smiled. Vex was such a nice alpha and brother-in-law.

"OF COURSE." With the new task occupying his mind, he rushed to the living room.

Vex watched him go with a fond smile, then went to fetch Stretch. He knocked on the bedroom door quietly before entering. Stretch woke up and yawned and stretched. "Hey there, love. Is it that time already?" He got up and straightened his clothes.

"YES, THEY SHOULD BE HERE ANY MINUTE." He came over and helped straighten Stretch's clothes, fussing a little. Then he kissed his mate's forehead. "BERRY IS ANXIOUS TO SEE IF EVERYONE LIKES HIS FOOD."

"I’m sure they will, and he will be over the moon." Stretch gave Vex a kiss. “Let's head out.”

Vex led the way back downstairs.

* * *

Red, the lazy bum, was waiting until the last minute to get up from his comfortable seat on the couch and go with Sans.

Sans came up to Red and gave him a quick kiss. "you all set?"

"mmm..." He pretended to consider it for a moment. "yeah, i think so. but i could do with one more kiss."

Sans chuckled, "it's a good thing we have plenty more of them." He leaned over and gave him another kiss. Red made a pleased noise, and then Sans ported them into the swap-bros kitchen. Red stretched.

"oof. alright. time to kick ass at whatever game."

* * *

Berry was just taking the games out of the cabinet and placing them on the table when he heard the knock at the front door. He rushed to it and took a second to make sure his clothes were straight, then opened the door. Howl and Daemon were standing there. His soulbeat became a little faster. He smiled happily at them. "HELLO. I'M GLAD YOU BOTH MADE IT."

Howl nodded to Berry. He never quite smiled, but he looked pleased to see the other monster nonetheless. "GOOD EVENING, BERRY. I HOPE YOU BROUGHT KNITTING SUPPLIES." He stepped inside, again leading Daemon by a leash. The taller brother snuffed out a cigarette before stepping inside, beaming at Berry.

"hiya. you look cheerful."

"OH YES, THEY ARE IN THE LIVING ROOM." Berry said happy to Howl, then he looked at Daemon when he spoke. "I AM." He blushed and looked away. “I GOT TO MAKE OUR FOOD TONIGHT. " He started to twist his phalanges. "I USED A RECIPE FROM CLASS. I HOPE IT MEETS BOTH OF YOUR EXPECTATIONS."

"aw, i'm sure it'll be really tasty," Daemon assured Berry, following inside. "howl said you had fun, so i'm glad. stuff like that should be fun. me, i get frustrated with cooking, so i let him do it, hehe."

Berry looked up at Daemon With a hopeful smile. "THANK YOU. I SORRY IT FRUSTRATES YOU, BUT I AM REALLY LIKING IT. IT'S NICE BEING ABLE TO HELP MY FAMILY, TO BE USEFUL."

"eh, that's okay. nobody likes doing everything, right?" Daemon shrugged and smiled. Howl led the way into the room and settled himself down in a seat, making sure there was room on either side of him so no one got too close. He pulled out his own knitting supplies from a bag to get set up. Daemon settled nearby him. Berry followed Daemon’s lead and grabbed his supplies before he settled down on the floor facing Howl eagerly waiting, his instruction.

Stretch saw Berry blush as he talked with Deamon. He stifled a giggle. Blueberry looked so happy and so cute. It was something Stretch missed seeing and was starting to think he would never see again. These two new skeletons were strange, but they were good for his brother. The pregnant monster tilted his head, trying to get Vex to look.

Vex noticed and glanced over when Stretch bid him to, and saw the blush on Berry's face as he talked with Daemon. He seemed to be flustered around Daemon. That was cute. Maybe they'd get close. He smiled as well, settling Stretch in his lap. Stretch was very happy with this, smiling.

"Welcome back," he told Daemon and Howl. He heard something and looked over to the kitchen as Red came out followed closely by Sans. "heya!”

Sans replied, "what up?"

"sup." Red plopped into the couch, giving a two-fingered salute to his brother, making him roll his pupils.

Howl set out his yarn and needles, and pulled out a starting piece to show to Berry. "THIS HERE I'VE ONLY DONE ABOUT TWENTY MINUTE'S WORK ON. IT'S A GOOD EXAMPLE OF HOW TO GET STARTED. SO, THIS IS HOW YOU PLACE YOUR NEEDLES, AND YOU START MAKING THIS MOTION WITH THE YARN TO CREATE A PATTERN. IF YOU MAKE A MISTAKE, YOU CAN GO BACK BY FROGGING IT. I'LL SHOW YOU THAT WHEN IT INEVITABLY HAPPENS."

Berry watched Howl show how to do the motion. He cast on the yarn and followed the motion. Facing Howl, he was seeing it backwards, so it was a little hard. Trying to keep the yarn tension was a challenge, making his stitches uneven sizes.

"YOU NEED TO BE MORE CAREFUL, THOSE AREN'T EVEN. COME HERE." Howl beckoned Berry over. "I'LL SHOW YOU HOW TO FROG IT."

Berry got up and brought Howl his work. "IS IT CALLED FROGGING BECAUSE THE YARN IS HOPING OVER?" He was curious.

Howl sighed. "NO, BUT IT IS A SIMILARLY PUN-RELATED TERM... IT'S BECAUSE..." He demonstrated pulling the needles out and pulling the yarn apart. His next words sounded exasperated. "YOU 'RIP IT RIP IT.'" He then cringed at his own telling of the pun. Berry tried to hold in his giggles at the explanation as he watched the skillful hands work carefully. "YOU MAY LAUGH," Howl sighed. Then he gestured to Berry. "NOW YOU TRY IT. CAREFUL."

Berry smiled happily that he had been given permission. "THANK YOU," he said, giggling. He took the work back and sat on the floor again. He worked slower this time and tried to keep the yarn wrapped around his pinky like Howl did. It came out a lot better, but not as good as Howl. He showed Howl when he finished the row. “IT'S GETTING BETTER.”

Stretch watched his brother. He was a little upset that Berry chose to sit on the floor, but if that was what he wanted he wouldn’t challenge it. Maybe Berry just wanted more space to work? As he watched them more and saw that Berry was happy, he started to pay attention to the visiting skeletons. "So, how was everyone's week?" Stretch wanted to give Berry some time before they ate.

"pretty good," Sans said, "only had one kid blow up his science project.” He chuckled. "the class is gettin' really good with the fire extinguishers."

Red huffed at his boyfriend's news. "you really need to let me come be a guest so i can scare those dumb kids into using some proper lab safety! geez. gonna wind up killin' somebody, fuck's sake..."

"Sans, you're really letting the kids start fires?" Stretch was concerned.

"sure thing, red." He looked to Stretch. "nothing big. It's the senior AP class. I stop the other kids before something goes too wrong. These kids are going to have to know how to take care of a problem like this in college."

Red scowled. "they're going to have to know how to not fucking start fires in the first place. lab safety means watching all flames, keeping chemicals apart, goggles, gloves, all of it. tch."

"Red, breathe." He rubbed his boyfriend’s arm. "Ya know science you gotta expect the unexpected. They got to learn how to handle things like that and I'm there to keep it from getting out of control. They are becoming adults, if they don't get experience now in a controlled environment, it could be really bad later when it does happen and they don't know what to do, from lack of experience." He sighed, "we go over lab safety before lab work, everytime. But they need a chance to mess up and learn from it." Red was getting passionate, and Sans tried to tune out the others. He hoped they didn't get into a fight.

Red huffed again. "yeah that's all well and good but their mess-ups shouldn't include explosions. chemistry is only one kind of science, anyway. teach them to build robots." He was irritated (and concerned for the dumb kiddos), but didn't seem invested in really arguing.

Sans leaned into Red's side and rubbed his hand on the top of Red's leg to let him know he wasn't upset or anything. "You’re right there, after school club, I been helpin' them work on robotics, but enough about me." He gave Red a little tap on the leg. "What about you?"

Red put an arm around Sans, relaxing a little. "that's good then. i'm working on the next draft of my thesis and uuugh. it's so much work. i hate writing fancy. it's the worst. i still need like 10,000 more words. i'm gonna die, sansy."

Sans relaxed into Red's hold. "That's not too bad. I'll give it some pointers if ya want."

"eh. sure, sweetheart. though it's gotta all be my work. all my marrow, sweat and tears. and boy is there a lot. nasa better love me."

Sans smiled. "please i wouldn't do more work. I said pointers." He teased.

Stretch thought about what they said. Both arguments had merit, and it made him think. He looked at Vex. "maybe we should talk about parenting techniques later, so we are on the same page."

"OH." Right. Parent techniques. Something Vex had never even thought of before. "ER. YES. RIGHT. I WAS GOING TO BUY SOME BOOKS ON THE TOPIC."

Red suggled Sans and nuzzled his skull, "heh, got me there. alrighty, sansy, be my teacher~ i'll take notes and be a good student." His voice went into a low purr and his hand drifted to his boyfriend's leg.

Vex threw a pillow at Red. "KEEP IT IN YOUR PANTS, BROTHER."

A cute blush took over Sans’ skull at Reds words. He snickered as the pillow Vex threw hit Red. Red chucked it back, then settled in to just hold Sans. He might just nap until the food was served.

Howl made a disgusted noise at Red, scowling again and stabbing at his work with more force. He focused back on Berry’s work. "YES, THERE YOU GO.”He sounded proud. “THAT'S MUCH BETTER. REPETITIVE MOVEMENTS. THERE'S A LOVELY RHYTHM TO KNITTING. IT'S LIKE A SONG."

Berry smiled and asked shyly, "DO YOU LIKE MUSIC?"

"YES," Howl responded, going back to his own knitting. He kept his movements slow, so Berry could watch and imitate. "I HAVE A FONDNESS FOR IT."

"master sings opera super good," Daemon chimed in, sliding down to sit next to Berry.

Berry looked on in awe. "WOOOOOWZER... MAYBE ONE DAY YOU WOULD SING FOR ME..." Berry flushed a bright blue. "US. SING FOR US."

Howl actually looked a little flustered at that, a first for him. He cleared his throat. "YES, WELL... I DON'T SING FOR JUST ANYBODY, BUT I MIGHT CONSIDER IT. YOU HAVE BEEN VERY GOOD TO US."

Berry's smile reached his eyelights, turning them into stars when he said he would consider it. He paused in his knitting, turned to Daemon. "what do you enjoy?" he asked.

Stretch leaned onto Vex's chest. He was ready to eat, but did not want to interrupt Berry. He was just so cute whenever he blushed. Vex wrapped his arms around his mate again. He also wanted to eat soon, but he was invested in Berry getting close to Daemon and Howl. They were good for him.

"oh, me?" Daemon hummed. "well, i like dancing. not, um, to operas, though." He giggled a little. "i like belly dancing. and other kinds of dancing you get to do without a shirt."

Berry blushed at that, hiding into his bandana. The image in his mind bordered on lewd. He squeezed his knitting. "VEX TEACHES DANCING." He said shyly.

Daemon looked totally innocent despite the blush. "oh, really? what kind?"

"BALLET, OF COURSE. THE MOST TRADITIONAL AND SOPHISTICATED AND BEAUTIFUL OF DANCES." Vex puffed up proudly.

"oooh, cool, very prestigious!" Daemon said admiringly. "there's ballet in opera!"

"INDEED THERE IS,” Howl agreed. “TYPICALLY IN THE FIRST HALF.”  
Stretch wanted to laugh when Berry made that face and tried to hide. He took pity on his older brother, even if the blush was too cute and offered him an escape. "bro, did you want to sever your sandwiches?"

“AH YES, I AM EAGER TO TRY YOUR COOKING,” Howl agreed.

Berry got up and set his knitting on the table. "OKAY." He hurried off to the kitchen and carried out the plates of food and a pitcher of milk to the table. "I MADE SANDWICHES AND FRUIT WITH VEGGIES, SO WE COULD PLAY AND EAT."

"that's a great idea Berry." Stretch smiled and gave his brother a light noogie as he passed by him to sit at the table.

"HOW VERY THOUGHTFUL," Howl agreed, setting down his own knitting. "WHAT SORT OF SANDWICHES?" His gloves were slid off, since sandwiches didn't require utensil use.

Berry smiled. "IT'S A RECIPE FROM THE CLASS, EGG SALAD SANDWICHES." He wanted to show off his new skills.

"OH YES? THAT SOUNDS GOOD. EGG SALAD SANDWICHES ARE A CLASSIC FOR A SNACKLIKE MEAL. THEY LOOK QUITE NICE CUT INTO LITTLE PIECES." He sounded very approving.

"they look great! oh yeah, what game are we playing?" Daemon asked.

"DID WE WANT TO PLAY UNO?" Berry asked hopefully.

"sure thing bro," Stretch replied.

Sans gently shook Red, "foods ready."

"mm..." Red stirred and yawned. "i'm awake. food?"

Sans giggled at Red and held out his hand to help pull him up. They went and looked at the spread. "very good, berry!"

"looks good, blueberry shortcake,” Red agreed, getting himself a plate.

"INDEED. I'M PROUD OF YOU, BERRY." Vex got himself and Stretch a plate each.

Daemon took his happily. "yummy! thanks!"

Berry's skull was a giant blueberry. His soul felt so happy and light. He played with the end of his bandana. "THANK YOU." He watched as the others ate his food. His soul felt so happy. Daemon and Howl liked it, too! He was able to help nurture his family. He was useful! He decided, right then and there, he was going to go to the class every week.

Stretch was so glad tonight was working out so well. Berry deserved this. By the Angel, he deserved happiness. "great job bro." He went and grabbed the uno cards.

They all ate very happily between card rounds and complimented his food. Daemon beamed and asked if he could hug Berry. He liked hugs.

Berry was in shock at the request and torn. He really wanted it. He wanted it so bad.

~~Dirty Sully! Tempting good clean monsters.~~

Berry started shaking as the voice kept telling him he was dirty, he was going to make them dirty. But Daemon had a collar too. It was okay, right? Daemon was like him... It was a friendship hug. Not romantic. "OKAY." He opened his arms to accept the hug.

Daemon hugged him, nice and tight but also gentle. He was very warm, warmer than most, and he made a happy sound into the embrace. Howl was watching the two of them, his chin in one hand, looking as pleased as a cat who had the milk.

Berry couldn't remember the last time someone that wasn't his brother hugged him. He told himself being held down wasn't the same as a hug, and he tried not to remember the last time. It was a great hug. It wasn't trapping him. It was safe. Warm. It was wonderful.

The voice in his mine sounded quieter, felt further away. That was really nice. Slowly, he stopped shaking and relaxed into the hug. "YOU’RE A GOOD HUGGER." he said quietly.

Daemon made another happy sound at the compliment. "thank you, i try my best~ you're a good hugger too! i like this hug. we can hug whenever you want, okay?"

Berry felt like he was going to cry. Daemon was so nice. Berry felt he didn't deserve it. He gripped onto Daemon a little tighter. "THANK YOU." The smaller monster hid his face in Daemon's jacket and until his soul stopped beating so fast. When he let go, he pulled his bandana up to try and hide behind it.

The rest of the night went smoothly. Berry had a lot of fun. His soul felt so happy and warm and Daemon gave him another hug before leaving.

* * *

It had been a few weeks now. Currently, Berry was lying curled up under his bed. The soft materials, always so close, were torture. He reached out to seek more soft touches. ~~You want to nest? You don't deserve these soft materials, but you do deserve this, Sully.~~ His old break ached more than normal and his bones buzzed with the reminder of his lessons as he pulled his hand back.

The voice in his mind had berated him more than normal the last few weeks. It was constantly reminding him he didn't deserve happiness. He was a burden on the underground. Unwanted. Sully.

Yet, Howl still called and talked with him, not only about the class, but about his knitting as well.

Daemon asked to give him hugs every game night. Daemon's hugs made him feel wanted. Happy. Warm. Safe. It was tempting to hug him again…. Berry had asked for an extra one before they left last time.

~~Sully! Temptress! You’re bad!~~

Berry closed his eyelights and tried not to think about how the voice was right. About how he was being bad again.

He crawled out from under the bed and made sure his old blanket was folded and hidden.

Right now was the time to think about class. He straightened out his clothes and went to his desk to look down at the list of things he needed the next class. It was about decorating cookies, as it was getting near February. They would make small shortbread cookies. It said that the teacher would have limited supplies to wrap them up and suggested giving them to your special person.

Berry really wanted to do this class. He wanted to give Howl and Daemon cookies.

Berry's soul felt warm. He laid his hand over it, careful of the hole in his ribs. His body wanted to nest so badly and it was getting hotter. He knew his heat was coming. He shouldn't go to class.

He remembered his lesson from the time he was in the sanatorium. “I’M A SULLY. A BAD OMEGA. WE HAVE A LOT OF UNWANTED CHILDREN THAT TAKE THE LIMITED RESOURCES.” He could almost see the guards standing, watching, making sure he said the mantra over and over. His bones ached more with the memories.

The queen had made it known to all the underground they were the cause of the underground troubles. They tempted good, clean monsters with their incorrigible pheromones, making babies use up the limited resources they had.

That was why the Sully law was in effect. If your family couldn't keep the omega under control.... if they had tempted the good clean monsters and made them rape you, they could report it to the guard.

Berry took a deep breath. It was a long time ago. He had an adult family to help now. One who claimed him. It wasn't the same as last time when he went out that day 6 years ago. When he went searching for food for Stretch and himself. When he was collared as a Sully and taken to the Sanitarium to learn his lessons.

Berry knew he should stay home locked up like a good omega, but he had the suppressants now. Stretch had been telling him for years he could go out if he took them.

>   
> “it's easy bro.” Stretch held up a pack of pills. “you just take one in the morning, then one in the afternoon. you don’t show signs of heat, so no one knows.”

He looked at the class list. He really wanted to go. He twisted his fingers hard and stared at the bottle of pills. He had already been bad, hugging Daemon… But nothing had happened.

The short skeleton pictured Daemon and Howl’s faces when he was to give them the special bag of cookies next game night. That made his decision.

Berry took a med, then put one in a baggie for later. The day went on and he finished his chores. Soon, it was time to head to the bus stop. The nervous monster gathered all the supplies and placed them in his nice blue bag. He pulled the strap of his blue bag over his shoulder. He needed to take it during the class. He had to hurry to catch the bus.

He ran up to the bus stop just as the bus turned the corner. The bus pulled over and Berry showed his pass to the driver before taking a seat near the front of the empty bus. Then pulled out his list to look at it, smiling as he read the class description again. He didn't notice the baggie fall out.

* * *

Class was going well. His cookies were only slightly burnt and were cooling. It was getting slowly warmer in the room, even when the stoves were now off. Then the skeleton’s phone alarm started to vibrate, letting him know it was time for his pill. He dug around in the messenger bag, but the baggie with his pill was gone.

Berry’s hands started shaking badly. He could barely hold on to the items as he pulled everything out. Soon he had the bag upside down and shaking it. A small whine passed his teeth. He started to pack up his belongings. They had to be here. Without the suppressants, his scent would kick in soon. His search ended in vain. He stuffed the cookies in the cute bag the teacher had given them and held it in one hand. His phone was gripped tight in the other as he went to call Stretch in the hallway, but there were monsters in the halls. His scent was starting... His magic had summoned and slick was starting to soak his pants.

Berry whimpered. This was bad. He was bad. ‘WHY AM I ALWAYS BAD?’ The thought passed through his mind and his soul skipped a beat when the monsters started to look around. He ran. He had to be alone. He ran outside to an ally. It looked empty, so he hid behind the trash cans.

Shaking hands tried to push and hold the power button on the phone. It felt like an eternity before it turned on. Then he couldn’t get the buttons to work with his shaking hands.

**(STOP HERE IF YOU NEED TO SKIP GRAPHIC NON-CON SCENE AND PROCEED TO NEXT CHAPTER.)**

There were footsteps approaching the alleyway. "hey, the scent is in here," a gruff voice barked out. It sounded familiar to Berry. Three men headed right for Berry in the traditional Swap guard uniforms. A wolf monster, a snake monster, and a hawk monster. The trio had been notorious in the Sanitarium.

"sssmellssss familiar... no?" the snake hissed.

Berrys soul dropped. He knew those voices. He knew what was going to happen. It was the same thing that always happened when he was bad.

He gripped the bag of cookies tight, crushing them unknowingly. A small whimper escaped him. Tears gathered in his sockets.

The eagle monster, Tal, found him first. He kicked one of the cans down that Berry was hiding behind. "Well well well. Look what we have here! Cory, Pret, a familiar face."

"Aw, it's the sweet-smelling Blueberry!" Cory sneered, his furry tail lifting up high. "We remember you, you filthy little thing."

"You remember usssss?" Pret asked, winding between his two partners, his tail starting to wind around one of Berry's legs.

Berry's body was shaking. Cory loved to teach Berry his lessons by breaking his bones. He was good at not making a mess.

"Y… YES... I'M SORRY. PLEASE. I'M SORRY. I DIDN'T MEAN TO BE BAD. PLEASE."

"Course you didn't mean it," Tal sneered, flapping his wings. "You're just a dumb Sully, you tempt everyone. You'll always be bad."

'They are right.' Berry thought. He shouldn't have left the house. He was a dirty temptress. He left the house. He knew better.

"That's right. So stop hiding!" Cory lunged from all fours, snapping his teeth around Berry's shoulder, and dragged him a little out from his corner so they could all reach him. It hurt as the teeth fell into the old scares and dragged him out. It was no use fighting it. It would only be worse. He was Sully. He deserved this.

Cory bit down a little harder, splintering the bone a little, then let go. "We're gonna teach you the lesson you forgot."

"Sssso you'd better remember thissss time." Pret bit at Berry's pants, tearing them off his pelvis.  
Tal dropped his own pants, revealing his duck-like spiral dick. It tended to be painful to regular entrances.

Berry cried out as his bone started to splinter. He didn’t dare ask again. He knew that he was bad. The ingrained habits took over. The abused skeleton opened his legs and presented his neck when they ripped off his pants. He was trembling, breathing hard, slick dripping down his femurs. Tal's dick brought back even painful memories.

Pret unwound from Berry's leg. "I'll take the back," he hissed, and Tal wrenched Berry up onto his hands and knees so he was accessible from both sides. Then the eagle monster pressed into Berry instantly from below, his spiral dick driving in harshly. Berry screamed as Tal pressed violently into him. Gods it hurt! His memory must have dulled, it hurt worse than he remembered. Tears were streaming down his face. Pret's hemipenis lined up at his ass, the snake's body draped across his back. Both snake members started to enter Berry as he bit Berry's neck. He wasn’t prepared, and he ripped as they went in. Cory loomed over Berry, dropping his own pants to present his member to Berry's mouth.

He could barely see through the tears and the pain. "sorry..." he croaked.

The wolf monster growled, smacking the side of Berry's face with his cock. "Suck me, you useless Sully."

Berry tried to support himself on his hurt arm, and opened his mouth obediently. Cory pressed balls deep into him, making him choke. His lessons came back to him and he swallowed around the dick to help with the choking.

All three of them were taking what pleasure they wanted, uncaring of how it made Berry feel. Or, not uncaring, but relishing it. Pret was biting all over Berry's neck, leaving marks, while his dual members awkwardly thrust in and out. Tal was ruthless, slamming in at a fast pace. Cory scratched at Berry's head with his claws, pushing him deeper around his dick with a pleased growl. Berry couldn't do anything against them. He tried to keep his body limp, but the biting and scratching made his body buck, and flinch made the dicks go deeper and at different angles.

Each of them spilled their load into him, one at a time. Tal was first, shoving in hard one last time with his harsh member and groaning as he came. He bit at Berry's neck too, then, his beak clamping down on the bone. Pret was next, his long, lithe body shuddering as each member released into Berry's ass. He went limp as a noodle after, sated. Then it was just Cory, fucking Berry's mouth, grunting and snarling. He pushed Berry around his member further and came right down his throat, sticky and not tasting pleasant.

Berry's body shuddered at the filling. His bones where they had been biting him oozed marrow. When the beak clamped down on the splintered bone it couldn’t take the pressure and snapped. He screamed around Cory's dick. Then the claws bit in deeper into his skull and the sick taste filled him. He couldn't breathe. He passed out.

The three of them pulled away from him, breathless but laughing. "That'll teach him," Cory grunted. "Let's go, boys." They left him there in the alley, bleeding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary: Berry makes food for the next family game night and learns how to knit from Howl. He seems to be very eager to speak with both Fellswaps, which Stretch notices. Sans and Red get into a minor argument about lab safety in science classrooms. Howl mentions he sings opera and might sing for Berry one day, a bit flustered as he says so. Daemon hugs Berry before they go. There is a time skip of a few weeks, and Berry is worried about going to class because he is going into heat. He has pills he takes to suppress them, and takes one and brings another to class. He loses it on the bus without noticing. Mid-class, he realizes he has to take it and it isn't there, and leaves in a hurry. In an alleyway just outside, three Swap guards smell him and recognize him from the Sanitarium. They proceed to gangbang him and leave him injured on the ground.


	4. A Rose that Won't Bloom, Winter's Kept You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the view of the swaps is... Sullied

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you for reading. Please kudos, comments. It really makes our day seeing them and replying. 💜💙
> 
> Also, don't forget to subscribe to the story or to GetMcDunkedOn or myself to get updates in your email!
> 
> Edit: Went back and gave all the chapters song lyric titles. Because we both just be like that fam ;)
> 
> Chapter tags: aftermath of rape (description of the mess left behind), talk of Sully conditioning, panic associated with aversion conditioning, discussion of laws protecting sexual assault, bragging from the assaulters
> 
> If you want to avoid the graphic scene of the crime, please go down to where I have plainly indicated that they leave the area!

Berry woke up cold and sticky as the slime was drying on his bones and magic. He tried to roll up into a ball, but pain flared all over his body, ripping a high-pitched sound from him. The sticky cum was caught in his throat and made him cough up some of the awful tasting spunk. He didn’t know how long he laid there in pain and coughing. He only knew it took a long while before he was able to move his body enough to crawl over to where his phone had fallen by the now dumped-over trash cans.

This was a pain that he’d hoped to never relive. He had wanted it to stay in the underground. The surface was supposed to be a new beginning. At least that was what he was told. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He knew it was best to breathe through the pain. It may have been 3 years since he lived with this, but it had been almost daily back then and, 'at least back then most of my lessons were one guard at a time,' he thought.'

He slowly made his way through the trash. Another painful sound made its way out of him. His shoulder was killing him every time he moved, but he managed to dig through the fallen trash and find the phone. The screen was smashed, it was impossible to tell who he was calling and he couldn’t remember how far he had scrolled down before he had been caught being bad. He hit the button, he didn't care who it called at this point: Stretch would be best, but Sans or Red could get here faster and take him home. He needed to be home before he tempted more good clean monsters.

After only one ring, the phone picked up. "HELLO, BERRY. ARE YOU HOME FROM YOUR COOKING CLASS? WHAT DID YOU MAKE TODAY?"

Howl. His phone called Howl. He was going to know how dirty Berry was and that he was Sully. It also meant that Daemon world knew too. Would they not want to be around a Sully?

~~Sully don't deserve nice things. We have wasted enough resources on you dirty Omegas.~~

The voice was loud in his mind after the lesson, and it was right... Something in him broke a bit. His jaw quivered and unshed tears gathered in his sockets as remember his latest lesson. Berry’s voice was soft and emotionless. "I NEED TO GO HOME..."

There was a pause, and then Howl’s voice over the phone came out more tersely. "WHERE ARE YOU, BERRY? WHAT HAPPENED?"

He knew better than not to answer a direct question. The guards didn’t like to repeat themself but it hurt his soul to tell Howl the truth. "I AM BAD." Some emotions broke though the dam and the tears started to spill over and his voice quivered as he admitted to Howl, "I WAS GIVEN A CORRECTION." The guards didn’t like him crying. If they came back to him and he was crying, they would give him a reason to cry. "I NEED TO GO HOME. I’LL BE GOOD,” he begged. He yelled at himself mentally; he had been holding back the tears, so well.

Howl had been nice before; maybe he would give this small mercy. "PLEASE. I WANT TO GO HOME." Before they came back or others found him.

There was a sharp inhale, and then Howl spoke again, forcibly calmer. "WHERE ARE YOU?" he repeated.

Berry flinched when he realized he made Howl repeat himself. "I..." It was hard to see through all the tears. "IN THE ALLEY. NEXT TO THE CENTER... I TRIED TO BE GOOD.” He tried to crawl a little further into the trash to hide. “I’M SORRY. I’M BAD, PLEASE..." The ends of his collar bone rubbed against each other, blinding pain erupted in his arm. He dropped the phone and it went black.

"WE WILL BE RIGHT THERE. JUST HOLD ON. IT'S NOT-" Howl cursed as the phone beeped. He tucked the phone away and grabbed the first-aid kit. "DAEMON, THE CENTER, NOW."

Daemon looked on anxiously from his spot on the other side of their couch. When he was addressed, he snapped to attention. "yes, master." His hand gently touched Howl's, and then they were there, landing just in front of the doors. He shuddered at the scent in the air, sockets narrowing. "heat scent..." He led the way to the alleyway, where they both came to a sharp stop to look at Berry barely hidden behind the trash cans.

Berry was a mess. He curled up in the garbage. His pants were ripped open and hanging on his legs. There was semen not only leaking out of all his orifices but clinging to his face and body. His bandana had been ripped and fallen off when Cory had first pulled him out of his hidey-hole. The small skeleton’s skull, neck, and shoulder were covered in cuts, scrapes, and bite marks. Morrow was still oozing out of some of the wounds. Berry currently had his hand over the broken bone holding it together. The hated collar, a tight black leather band, was on plan display. The terror-stricken monster looked up in uneasiness when he heard the footfall and saw Howl and Daemon.

Berry looked away at the shock in their eyelights. They knew now and apprehension made a home next to the pain and panic he was feeling. He was Sully. He didn’t know what to expect as they kept looking. He was afraid that the shock would turn into hate, as it always did with the rest of his kind, the Underswap monsters. Daemon was wearing a collar, so maybe they would show him mercy and take him home before the guards came back for him.

Daemon's shock started to melt into fury. He had let go of Howl, and now his hands balled into fists. His scent started to permeate the air as he growled low, deep, dangerous. His vision blurred from anger, red tingling the edges. He would find whoever did this. He would find them and RIP THEM A-

"MUTT, HEEL!" Howl's voice rang out sharply. The shorter skeleton had summoned his claws without thinking, an equal rage burning in him. But he had to keep his head. They both had to keep their heads. "CALM DOWN. NOW."

Daemon took in a deep, sharp breath. Just like that, the pheromones were halted, and he blinked his vision clear. Calm. Yes. Calm. He took the first aid kit from his master and approached, kneeling in front of Berry. "i'm going to try and heal you as much as possible before we move," he said, each word enunciated carefully, calmly, gently. "may i touch you?"

Berry presented his neck at the strong pheromones. They always meant it was time for a lesson. He flinched at the pain it caused as a small whimper passed his teeth. Then Daemon came up to him, but he didn't touch him? Didn't try to use him? He asked to heal him... he felt confused. Why was he asking a Sully for permission to touch them? They were not allowed to say 'no.' They teach him a lesson. Use him. Hurt him. It was what his kind deserved. It kept the population under control.

 ~~Omegas shouldn’t feel safe anywhere,~~ the voice reminded him.

A few more seconds went by and Daemon still waited patiently to touch him, kneeling there, assessing the damage without moving. Berry knew he was just postponing the inevitable. It was best to obey commands. Berry was so confused and not answering was making him be outside longer, be bad longer. He finally gave a short nod, trying to keep his shoulder still.

When Berry nodded, Daemon gently pulled away the small hand and then the clothing around Berry's shoulder. He started there, his hands only barely touching, glowing green and pouring in as much healing magic as he could. "who's collar is this, berry?" he asked softly. "why do they not protect you?"

Howl paced in front of the alleyway, forcing his weapons away, and kept an eye out for any passers-by. Nobody else would see this. Nobody else would touch Berry like this. Not again. Not ever again. He was ready to snarl at and fight anyone who even thought about stepping past him.

Berry’s black collar held the delta rune and his name. Daemon was collared too, so the question was confusing. The only protection a Sully had was family... he didn't take his eyelights off the floor. He wanted to be good, so he answered the question. "THERE’S NO PROTECTION WITH A COLLAR. IT SHOWS I’M DIRTY. I’M BAD. A SULLY."

The tall monster tilted his head, frowning. "you're not dirty or bad, and that's not what a collar's for... what's a sully?"

Berry tried to curl up, but it made his broken bone move. Once the pain passed he looked up at Daemon's collar. "When you do something bad, you're collared, so others know you need to be restrained... controlled."

"don't move," Daemon pleaded. "i have to heal you." He wasn't making much progress on the broken shoulder. He tried Berry's neck instead, his warm intent and powerful healing magic pressing into the smaller skeleton. "that's... that's not what collars are for. that's _wrong_."

"WE WON'T DISCUSS IT NOW," Howl said tersely. "RIGHT NOW WE NEED TO GET HIM HEALED AND HOME. THE REST CAN WAIT FOR NOW..." But he would be doing everything in his power to find and punish the people who did this.

Berry held as still as he could. Howl’s words comforted and quieted the apprehensiveness he was feeling. Daemon’s soothing warm intent helped him a lot as the caring monster healed his body. He wanted to ask what the collar meant to the Fell. Berry thought it was the same, so he didn't ask before, but he was going to be good for them. Howl said they were going to take him home, so he bit his tongue.

Daemon's hand moved wherever it needed to, healing Berry's body as best he could. When he was done, it was largely just the broken shoulder left. He opened the first aid kid and wiped away as much marrow as possible with some rags, then dabbed healing cream along the breaks. Finally, he unrolled bandages, wrapping them carefully along with the bones with a brace until none of it could move. "there... that's the best i can do right now. can i pick you up, berry? is that okay?" He closed the first aid kit again and tossed it to Howl, who caught it.

Berry looked down at his messy bottom. "I'LL MAKE YOU DRITY."

"i don't mind that," he said, shaking his head. "i can clean up later."

Berry twisted his fingers a bit and said, "OKAY THEN."

"okay." He gently scooped Berry up, then walked back over to Howl. Howl slowly put a hand on Daemon's shoulder, and then they were arriving in Berry's living room. It was late, he wasn't sure if Stretch and Vex were still up, but he tried to shield Berry's body from view as he headed for the stairs. "which bedroom is yours?"

**(THEY LEAVE THE SCENE OF THE CRIME HERE, NOTE THAT DISCCUSSION IS STILL HEAVY.)**

“THE 3RD DOOR AT THE TOP,” Berry replied. When they opened the door the room was utilitarian. A desk, hard wooden chair, nightstand with a lamp and dresser. The bed looked soft though. The bed was made nicely. It looked like it hadn't been slept in. In fact, it didn't have Berry’s scent on it at all. Just a vague factory scent, like it hadn't been used in the time it was on the bed.

Daemon paused when they got there, looking over the bed. He double-checked the scent. "berry..."

"WHY DO YOU NOT SLEEP IN YOUR BED?" Howl asked before Daemon could. "WHY HAVE YOU NOT MADE A PERSONALIZED NEST?"

Berry shivered at the word nest and grip on to Daemon harder. "SULLY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO NEST."

"ALL OMEGAS ARE ALLOWED TO NEST," he growled. "TO DENY AN OMEGA SUCH A THING IS TREASON OF THE HIGHEST ORDER. HOW CAN YOU FEEL SAFE WITHOUT ONE?" He snapped his fingers and pointed to the bed. Daemon nodded and gently set Berry on it, then started to tuck the blanket around him.

Berry was shaking and held Daemon tight as he was placed in the bed. Memories of the Sanatorium flooded his mind. Correction after correction. Memories of being left in a room with a nest that was linked to a training collar and every time he dared touch it, pain. Blinding pain.

Broken bones from a guard for daring to think about the safe, comfort of a nest.

~~Aversion therapy works best for Sully.~~

"NO, NO! I NEED TO BE GOOD!" He didn't let go of Daemon, trying to crawl back into his arms. He didn't care about the screaming pain in his shoulder. It would be nothing compared to being caught nesting. "NOT ALLOWED! I DON'T WANT TO BE BAD! PLEASE NO MORE CORRECTIONS! I JUST WANT TO BE GOOD! PLEASE!"

Daemon looked startled and confused. "berry, you're not being bad by nesting. please, it's okay. please settle down? please. nothing will happen to you, we're here."

"YOU'RE GOING TO HURT YOURSELF IF YOU KEEP MOVING LIKE THAT, AND _THAT_ IS BAD."

Berry froze when Howl said moving was bad. He let out a low tortured whine but didn’t let go of Daemon.

"LET HIM PUT YOU IN THE BED," he said, forcing his voice gentler. "I WILL BE RIGHT HERE. AND NOTHING WILL HAPPEN TO YOU. I SWEAR IT ON MY LIFE."

Berry looked at Howl. He had never lied. He brought him home. He was safe. He was nice. Slowly one by one Berry’s phalanges let go. He was sweating, his bones rattling almost as bad as when they first found him in the alley.

"GOOD. I'M PROUD OF YOU." Howl pulled up a chair to sit next to the bed. "TAKE A FEW DEEP BREATHS.”

Daemon put Berry on the bed and gently put the blankets over him again, trying to make him as nice and comfortable as possible.

Berry listened. He breathed as instructed. Daemon put the soft space-themed blanket on him. His instinct wanted him to relax in the warm safety. His training made him want to crawl away and beg forgiveness for daring to sit here.

“GOOD,” Howl praised him, “NOW THEN, PLEASE CALMLY TELL ME WHAT 'SULLY' MEANS."

'WOULD THEIR KINDNESS CHANGE WHEN THEY FOUND OUT?' Berry asked himself. He looked at their concerned faces. ‘THEY ARE FAMILY,’ he told himself. That was the only thing a Sully had. He had to trust them. No, he wanted to trust them. They had never hurt him. They came for him and took him home as his brother did all those years ago. Berry held the fluffy blanket his brother had got him and wrung it in his hands. It was soft just like when he stole touches from it under the bed. ‘I BELIEVE IN THEM. THEY WON’T LEAVE ME,’ he told himself.

"SULLY ARE UNCLEAN OMEGAS." He pointed at the collar. "LIKE ME. WE ARE MARKED WITH THIS COLLAR." He took a few more breaths and focused on textile inputs for his fingers playing with the blanket.

"OMEGAS HAVE A LOT OF CHILDREN, SO WE TAKE FROM THE UNDERGROUND. WE HOARD THE RESOURCES FROMM GOOD MONSTERS. THE QUEEN SAYS OMEGAS ARE THE CAUSE OF THE UNDERGROUNDS TROUBLES. WE ARE VILE TEMPTRESSES. GOOD MONSTERS FALL VICTIM TO OUR WILD UNCONTROLLABLE PHEROMONES." He was quiet a few moments before continuing. "SO IF YOUR FAMILY CAN'T KEEP THE OMEGA UNDER CONTROL... IF AN OMEGA IS CAUGHT TEMPTING GOOD, CLEAN MONSTERS AND MAKING THEM RAPE US, WE ARE REPORTED TO THE GUARD. THEN WE ARE TAKEN TO THE SANITARIUM."

Berry was shaking, and tears were falling down his face. “YOU LEARN YOUR LESSONS. YOU ARE GIVEN CORRECTIONS. IF YOU FINISH THE PROGRAM AND ARE MADE INFERTILE, YOU ARE DEEMED SULLY, AND IF YOUR ADULT FAMILY WANTS THE BURDEN OF A SULLY, THEY CAN COME CLAIM YOU. IF NOT, YOU STAY THERE."

"ENOUGH." Howl stopped him, his voice firm but also with some shakiness. As Berry had spoken, he had slowly wrapped his arms around himself, as if in some sort of self-protection. He looked smaller that way. Frail, as opposed to the strong façade he always put up. "THAT IS... ENOUGH."

The anger was rising again in Daemon, his sockets flashing, almost smoking. But he suppressed it for the sake of his brother and his friend, taking a deep breath. His shaking hands pet over the blanket a little. "your queen's wrong... we're gonna fix this, berry, ok? you don't deserve what happened to you. can you try and sleep now?"

Berry shut his mouth at Howl's command. The scared monster had been so lost in his mind he hadn't sensed Daemon’s anger.

"OKAY." he looked at the small image Howl was projecting. He wasn't sure how to process the motions. It was such a contrast to how the monster normally projected himself, so he laid down like he was told, "YOU'LL STILL STAY?" He asked the two monsters softly. He didn’t want to be alone.

"I WILL STAY, AS I PROMISED. DAEMON, HOWEVER, HAS TO GO AND INFORM YOUR BROTHER THAT YOU'VE BEEN... INJURED. HE WILL BE BACK WHEN HIS TASK IS COMPLETE."

"OKAY." Now that Berry had calmed down he was tired, yet he knew his mind wouldn’t let him sleep while in a nest. His body still had a dull ache from the brutal lesson though. He pulled the blanket tight around him. It was wonderful, sweet, and agonizing at the same time.

"NOW GET SOME REST." Howl managed to get a hold of himself, dropping his arms to lace his fingers together and assume a more powerful posture in his chair. "WE WILL SPEAK MORE TOMORROW." Howl quietly gave instructions to Daemon, who disappeared. He was back a minute later with Howl's knitting supplies, and the shorter skeleton started to knit quietly while Berry tried to sleep.

Berry laid there trying to relax in the soft nesting material. He wanted to obey, to be good for Howl, he really did. He knew he was being bad laying in the bed. Years of lessons played in his mind over and over. The ghost of memories was mixed in his mind with the current events.

He was so tired, but he couldn't relax enough to sleep. It was so frustrating. He laid there and quietly cried. Finally, he asked, "MAY I SLEEP UNDER THE BED?"

The quiet tears made Howl glare all the harder at his work. But he merely sighed at the question. "IF THAT IS WHERE YOU FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE, THEN VERY WELL."

"THANK YOU," Berry said softly. He carefully got out of the nest. He ran his hands gently over the blanket, smoothing it out with a look of longing. Then he got his old blanket from under the bed and draped over his shoulders carefully. Then he made his way under the bed. The nervousness was fading and his body relaxed. That was better. He could touch the softness. It pleased the want and need enough and Berry was able to pull back his hand before he was caught being bad. His insides started to unknot a bit now. It wasn't long before he was asleep.

Howl watched him as his knitting needles worked. When Berry was asleep, he paused, frowning down at the work he was doing. He lifted it and turned it, inspecting. It was a gentle blue color, uniform. Simple. He traced the 'B' he'd carefully inscribed, front and center in black. It was almost done... Perhaps he'd finish before morning and present it.

* * *

Meanwhile, Vex and Stretch had noticed immediately that Berry was late in coming home. They had tried to call, but there was no answer. By the time Daemon was first putting Berry down in bed, Vex was pulling up to the community center in his shiny red sports car. He parked and opened Stretch's door for him, like a gentleman. "HE MUST STILL BE HERE, WHERE ELSE WOULD HE BE?"

Stretch chewed nervously on a sucker. Vex had to be right. "Maybe berry just got distracted with decorating cookies and missed the bus?" He hoped so, but Berry not answering the phone was what had gotten his anxiety ramped up. He walked faster than his normal shuffle towards the front doors of the center.

"PERHAPS..." Vex followed, though he paused outside. He was catching a whiff of something. A strong scent. "YOU LOOK INSIDE. I'M GOING TO CHECK SOMETHING."

Stretch nodded and went inside. He went straight to the classroom. The only person left was the teacher. "Have you seen my brother, Berry?" The teacher told him about Berry getting upset in the middle of class and packing up and leaving.

Vex followed his non-existent nose away from the front doors, off to the side. It seemed like there was an alleyway, which looked recently wrecked. He looked around the area of the alleyway. The scent was strong, but starting to fade. He saw marrow on the ground, and a bit of torn fabric. After poking around some fallen trash cans, he found Berry's phone, cracked and dark. Probably broken, but it might be salvageable. He closed it and tucked it away in his inventory, then kept looking around. The only other thing was a baggie of what he assumed was decorated sugar cookies, crushed and ruined. He picked that up slowly as well, then put it away. Berry had been here; something terrible had happened...

Daemon arrived at the center again on his search for Stretch and Vex. After looking around and spotting that shiny sports car, he went to the alleyway. "here you are." His hands stuffed in his pockets. "if you're looking for berry, i got him home."

Vex looked over from frowning at the scraps of fabric. "WHAT HAPPENED?"

"uh, s'bad... really bad. some alphas caught his heat scent, and..."

Vex's expression turned stony. "STRETCH IS INSIDE TALKING TO THE TEACHER." He stood up straight to head inside.

Stretch had just been coming out to the front doors when Vex and Daemon headed up to the front doors. "HE'S AT HOME," Vex said. "DAEMON AND HIS BROTHER FOUND HIM."

The collared alpha nodded to him with a subdued little smile, but then it faded. "he got hurt badly by some alphas who found his heat scent. he's in bed, master's with him."

Stretch jaw clenched and the sucker shattered and his left eye light started to smoke, "them fuckers." He took a few deep breaths and tried to calm down. "please, take me to my brother."

"i'll get you there with a shortcut," Daemon offered, holding out his hand.

Vex was about to agree when his phone rang. He pulled it out and noted the caller ID. "IT'S MY BROTHER. YOU DO THAT, I'LL CATCH UP."

"Okay. Be safe," Stretch said as he took Daemon's hand. The next second, they had ported back to the house, in front of Berry's room.

"i think he's sleeping already,” Daemon said.”howl's in there watching over him. he promised to stay."

* * *

Vex headed back to his car as he answered. "WHAT IS IT, RED?"

"hey, bro, is everyone ok, do you know?" Red's voice came through with a backdrop of bar sounds.

"WHY DO YOU ASK?" Vex replied, startled.

"well, it's just... there's this rowdy little group here at the bar getting shitfaced, y'know, not a group of regulars... and they mentioned 'that stupid skeleton' and i thought... i mean, we're the only skeletons, right?"

Vex gripped his phone tighter. "I WANT YOU TO KEEP THEM THERE, RED. I'LL BE THERE SOON."

"what's going on, boss?"

"I'LL EXPLAIN LATER. JUST KEEP THEM THERE."

"...yeah, alright. see you soon, i guess." He hung up.

* * *

Stretch took the sucker stick out of his mouth and stuck it in a wrapper in his pocket and took a few deep breaths. "thanks. for helping my bro."

"of course. we care about him so much." Daemon nodded. His phone buzzed and he checked it. "gonna meet back up with vex. later." He was gone again.

Stretch opened the door quietly and walked in. When he didn't see Berry on the bed, his fist clenched. He was sure he was under the bed. It made sense. Berry hasn't felt safe enough to nest in anything soft in years. After being raped, why would he be recovering in the safety and comfort of one?

Howl looked up from his knitting and watched Stretch. "WE TRIED TO GET HIM TO SLEEP ON THE BED," he said, "BUT HE REFUSED. HE SAID SULLY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO NEST. HOW MUCH OF THIS BUSINESS DO YOU KNOW ABOUT?"

Stretch came over and knelt down and lifted the blanket to see the sleeping skeleton. His soul settled a bit at seeing him alive. Stretch sighed tiredly, "it's not his fault he's an omega." It sounded like an old argument. "we didn't have a family to take care of us." He rubbed Berry's skull lovingly. "he had no one to protect him. When he went missing, i thought the worst. i thought he had dusted. it wasn't until i was an adult and judge that i found his name on a list of institutionalized sullies, being used to test experimental treatments on. i went to the sanitarium that day and used my weight as not only his adult family, but as the judge to claim him and remove him from the unfinished treatment. he wasn't the same, but he's still my brother. I'm going to beat shit out of them fuckers even if the laws protect them and not berry."

Howl frowned. "TELL ME ABOUT THESE LAWS. YOUR QUEEN IMPOSED THEM? THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS SULLY WHERE WE COME FROM. ANYONE WHO DARED HARM AN OMEGA WAS SEVERELY PUNISHED. IT WAS THE ONE THING THE BLOODY RED QUEEN DID RIGHT."

Stretch looked confused for a moment and seemed to accept what Howl said. He took a deep breath and began. "long ago, before the king left, but after their child died, the queen declared war on the humans. any human that fell was to have their souls collected, and once we had seven, the barrier could be broken. only a few know this next part. the king was sad and lost in his grief about his children, and an omega came to his ‘comfort.’” He made air-quotes around the last word. “that was the real reason the queen passed the sully law. she claimed that omegas couldn't control themselves, and if their family couldn't control them, they needed training. By this point, food and rations were already becoming scarce. omegas tended to have more children than most. So they got more rations. It became common for monsters to think of omegas as stealing food from them. So the Sully law got more backing. If omage are found tempting good, clean monsters into sex, the rape is the omega's fault. Monsters see them as trying to burden and use the system, by getting pregnant and having more children. so sully are made infertile, because they have already been tempting monsters. they cannot be controlled, therefore, they will do it again, and make more and more babies, taxing the limited resources. Our laws say, it is always the omega’s fault."

Howl listened with ever-growing fury. "TO THINK, THEY CALL YOUR KIND 'SOFT,'" he spat, disgusted. "EVEN IF THERE WAS NO KILLING IN YOUR UNDERGROUND, IT WAS NO BETTER THAN OURS. WORSE, EVEN. THERE IS NO SOFTNESS IN THIS STORY. ONLY CRUELTY. BLAMING A VICTIM FOR RELEASING SCENTS THEY CAN'T CONTROL... THE TRAUMA OF THE ORDEAL IS ALREADY TOO MUCH, AND TO ADD THIS...!" He put his knitting down before he could break the needles in his rage. "THIS WILL NOT STAND. I DON'T CARE WHAT I HAVE TO DO, BE IT VIGILANTISM OR REGICIDE. THE SULLY LAW WILL END."

Stretch smiled at him. "if you are willing to end this law. i'll back you. i hate it, but there was no way to change it underground. Now on the surface, resources are not an issue and it's also one of the few things keeping the common monster laws back. Our queen has refused council when it's about changing it." He looked back down at his brother.

"YOUR QUEEN COULD USE A NICE BEHEADING. IT WORKED FOR MINE." He inspected his phalanges like they were newly-filed nails. "BUT I WILL PLAY BY THE RULES OF THIS SURFACE WORLD. I SUPPOSE IT'S A GOOD PLACE TO START WITH MY CAMPAIGNING, IN ANY EVENT." He looked back at the bed, with Berry hidden underneath. "IN THE MEANTIME. THERAPY."

The orange clad monster looked up from watching Berry. "i couldn't get him to go to therapy. maybe you can... he never was willing to talk about his time in the sanitarium, but maybe we could use his story to help you campaign for change. i'm sure once some hear berry's story, they will be other sullies willing to share their stories. There have been many families affected by the law."

"I WILL FIND A WAY TO CONVINCE HIM, EVEN IF I HAVE TO ACCOMPANY HIM AND SPILL SOME OF MY OWN SECRETS IN RETURN." Howl kept inspecting his sharpened phalanges, clicking a few together, checking their sharpness. A few could use some attention. "AND I'VE NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT. TELL ME... DO YOU KNOW IF THEY BUILT A NEW 'SANITARIUM' UP HERE TO CONTINUE THIS UNSEEMLY PRACTICE? PERHAPS SOME CANDID JOURNALISM..."

Stretch nodded. "they have, but only the queen, guards and 'doctors' know the exact location. As the other monarchs don't agree with the law, she didn't want interruptions, and she claims that the unclaimed sully being unsupervised would be a stain on society."

"THEN I WILL HAVE TO DO SOME DIGGING. UNFORTUNATE, BUT NOTHING I CAN'T HANDLE." He pulled out his phone and dialed.

* * *

Daemon reappeared at Vex's car. He got in while Vex started it. "I KNOW WHERE THE BASTARDS ARE," Vex said as he pulled out of the parking lot.

He pulled up to the undertale bar Red had found a job at. He parked carefully and headed inside, Daemon hot on his heels. Red was waiting, loitering around the table that housed the trio of guards. He was just setting down another pitcher of beer, and met his brother's gaze with a quick jerk of his head to beckon him. The taller skeletons came over as Red slipped away, back behind the bar. Vex eyed each monster up and down, memorizing their faces.

"GOOD EVENING," he said calmly. "I HEARD MENTION YOU MET A SKELETON EARLIER TONIGHT."

"Oh yeah?" Tal grabbed his beer and glanced at Red's figure at the bar, before smirking at Vex. "What's it to you? Are all skeletons one big happy family, huh?"

"SOMETHING LIKE THAT." He really wished he had stayed in the guard right about now. It would be so satisfying to drag them all outside kicking and screaming and slap some magic-suppressing cuffs on every one of them. Not as satisfying as killing them, but those days were behind him. "ARE YOU GOING TO COME WITH US QUIETLY OR DO I HAVE TO USE FORCE?"

"and you won't like it if we use force," Daemon added, hanging back only a few feet, his voice low and his alpha aura starting to permeate the area. It was powerful enough to make several bar patrons nervous, shifting away from him.

"We're not sssscared of you or your threatsssss," Pret hissed, casually looping his tail through his mug's handle. "We were _following_ the law. The little berry wasssss already Sssssully. Twicccce assss bad asss a firsssst time offender."

"SEXUAL ASSAULT IS ILLEGAL," Vex said, his voice a growl.

"Omegas tempting good, clean monsters like _us_ is illegal," Cory snorted. "We're swaps. We keep our own laws. There's nothing you can do to us."

"i can think of a few things i can do to you," Daemon said, his voice still too low and too deep. He started to lunge, but Vex grabbed him by the collar, stopping him. Daemon gasped in surprise, freezing, a hand going up to touch the leather now digging into his neck. He whined. The guards laughed.

"THIS ISN'T OVER." Vex pulled Daemon away, back outside. He was shaking with anger.

"why'd you stop me?" Daemon asked once outside, resettling his collar properly. "i know you wanted to kill them too."

"FOR ONE THING, MURDER IN A CROWDED BAR IS RELATIVELY HARD TO COVER UP," Vex responded dryly. "THINK OF THE REPERCUSSIONS. YOU WANT YOUR BROTHER'S CAMPAIGN SULLIED-" He cringed at the word with a horrific new meaning- "BY BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS? FOR ANOTHER, IT MAY MAKE US FEEL BETTER, BUT IT WON'T STOP THE SYSTEMATIC VICTIMIZATION GOING ON HERE. WE NEED TO KILL THIS AT THE SOURCE, INSTEAD OF MERELY TREATING THE SYMPTOMS."

Daemon huffed softly. "yeah, you've got a point... alright. we'll play the long game. ...thanks."

"DON'T MENTION IT."

Daemon's phone started to ring, he picked up. "yes, master?"

"WHERE ARE YOU?"

"outside red's work with vex. the three who hurt berry are inside... but they said what they did is legal, so we can't do anything to them."

"STRETCH HAS GIVEN ME SIMILAR INFORMATION. I NEED YOU TO FIND OUT WHERE THE SANITARIUM IS. ANY MEANS NECESSARY, SO LONG AS YOU'RE DISCREET. SELL OFF THE JOB TO A NOBODY IF YOU HAVE TO."

"okay, master." Daemon looked back at the doors. The uniforms they'd been wearing. "i know what to do."

"GOOD. ARE YOU BEHAVING?"

"yes, master. um. vex is helping."

"THEN CONTINUE TO ALLOW HIM TO DO SO WHEN I CAN'T."

"uh-huh. i'll be good, i don't wanna make a mess of things."

"GOOD." He sounded pleased. Maybe a little fond. "TAKE YOUR TIME."

"mhm. bye, master." He hung up and looked to Vex. "hey, you don't sleep a lot, right?"

"NOT REALLY. WHY?" Vex also glanced back at the bar. Red was at the table of those bastards, slamming a bill down and bristling.

"you wanna do a stakeout with me?"

"...I'M IN.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary: Berry wakes up after the assault with a broken shoulder and covered in mess. He calls Howl and begs to be brought home, traumatized from his 'correction.' Howl and Daemon arrive and Daemon heals Berry and asks why his collar doesn't protect him. They get Berry back home and try to put Berry on the bed, and he resists, saying he doesn't want another correction because he is not allowed to nest. Berry explains about omegas who 'tempt' other monsters in Underswap are illegal and get taken away to the Sanitarium to be corrected, and the collar symbolizes they are Sully. Howl is very shaken by the explanation. He promises to stay while Berry rests. Vex and Stretch arrive at the rec center to look for Berry, and Daemon goes back and tells them what happened. Daemon brings Stretch back home while Red calls Vex and tells him there are monsters at the bar he works at bragging about hurting a skeleton. Vex goes to the bar (and Daemon follows after putting Stretch at home) and they confront the guards, who claim they were following the law. Daemon almost attacks, but Vex pulls him back. Howl asks Stretch about the Sully laws, and Stretch explains that the queen made the law after her husband cheated on her with an Omega after their child died. Howl vows to end the law and sends Daemon to find out if there is a new Sanitarium. Daemon enlists Vex's help to go with.


	5. How am I Gonna Be an Optimist About This?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Howl promises to protect Berry, and teaches him a few things.
> 
> And in which Daemon and Vex investigate hell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoy this chapter a lot of questions get answered. Why not comment and let use know what you thought and what you think might happen?
> 
> Chapter tags: Victim-blaming thoughts, political talk, discussion of speaking about trauma, conditioning, fear/pain conditioning, torture, non-descriptive/non-graphic mention of ongoing rape, description of unethical scientific experimentation
> 
> I'll block off the worst parts of the trek through the Sanitarium in bold!

The night passed without much of an event. Stretch brought out a rollaway bed for Howl. The expecting monster stayed up with them for a while. Whenever Berry would start to whimper in his dream, he projected love and safety, which soon had the traumatized skeleton quieting down. Sometime late in the night or early in the morning, Stretch went to bed.

Howl stayed up with Stretch. He was knitting with powerful intent, focusing all his protectiveness and pride and care into every row. He projected it as well, a strong omega's nurturing scent that helped quiet the smaller monster after his brother went to sleep. Howl only went to sleep when he was done, curling up on the extra bed. He was now asleep, nestled in blankets and looking peaceful.

Memories played in Berry‘s mind, bleeding into his dreams, and he woke up a little while after Howl fell asleep. He stayed under the bed for a while after waking up, remembering where he was and trying to process all that had happened the night before.

'It's best not to dwell on corrections. Learn from them and change the behavior, so it doesn't happen again. Focus on the now,' he told himself. The feeling his senses told him about. The rough feeling of the blanket on his sore bones. The soft material his phalanges gently caressed. There was a strong scent that was starting to fade with time, but as he laid under the bed remembering, the smell helped calmed his mind and soul. It was cool and fruity? Refreshing, like a calm summer day, and you knew if you indulged in it, you would feel safe... warm… home. It helped make the correction feel like a bad dream he could push away the darkness of his subconscious.

He was there for some time, letting that fading scent encircle him and nurture him in its loving embrace. It calmed him. After the sun started to peek through the window, he peeked out his head to see he wasn’t alone. Howl had kept his promise. Berry watched the fell monster sleep. He could smell Howl’s scent lingering the strongest around the sleeping monster. A good nurturing omega was helping soothe his hurt soul. Howl had helped him so much last night. Even now, he was helping him. Both Howl and Daemon. His soul felt the warmth and he thought it might be the last of the heat making his soul beat a little faster thinking of them.

‘HOWL DESERVES MY BEST,’ Berry thought. ‘I WANT TO THANK HIM. I WANT TO MAKE HOWL HAPPY. HE KNOWS HOW BAD I CAN BE. I NEED TO SHOW HIM HOW GOOD I CAN BE.’ So Berry decided to make a quick breakfast for him. The small monster didn’t even notice that he was still in his ripped shirt (his pants remains fell off while he slept). Berry's mind was focused on the task at hand: ‘MAKE BREAKFAST. KEEP BUSY AND BE GOOD.’ His mind couldn’t handle more details at the moment. He got his egg cookbook and made his way quietly to the kitchen.

It was a challenge to cook with his broken arm, he hadn't had to deal with broken bones for a long time, but he was able to make it and brought the plate of scrambled eggs and took it back up to Howl.

"HOWL..." he called out gently.

Howl stirred when his name was called, blinking open his sockets. He sat up upon noticing Berry and quickly averted his gaze. "GOOD MORNING. HOW ARE YOU FEELING?"

"OKAY." Luckily, his soul only felt a little warm, the brutal lesson had broken his heart. ‘BUT I’LL NEVER LEAVE THE HOUSE DURING A HEAT AGAIN; PILLS OR NO PILLS. I’LL BE GOOD,' Berry told himself. Memories of the correction tried to come to the front of his mind and he pushed then to the back of his mind, into the deep darkest oubliette of his mind, where he kept all the details of his lessons trapped that he tried not to remember. He changed the subject. "I MADE YOU BREAKFAST." He held up the plate in his good hand.

"THAT'S GOOD." Howl eyed the breakfast. "YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO DO THAT, YOU'RE INJURED. YOU NEED REST AND TO NOT MOVE A LOT." But he took it nonetheless. "IT LOOKS GOOD. THANK YOU."

Berry blushed at the gratitude and concern. "ITS OKAY. IT'S JUST ONE BROKEN BONE." He said honestly, it was not that bad, he'd had worse. Berry sat on the floor and watched Howl eat.

"THAT ISN'T OKAY," Howl said, frowning. "ANY BROKEN BONES IS TOO MANY." He started to eat.

Berry pulled up his knees and thought about what Howl had said. Then he noticed he was still in his ripped shirt and dried bits on his bones. His blush deepened and went to get clean clothes. "I SHOULD TAKE A SHOWER."

"AH. YES. BUT AFTER YOU'RE DONE, I WISH TO SPEAK WITH YOU,” Howl said. “DON'T PUT ON A NEW BANDANA YET."

"OHHH, OKAY." Berry put the bandana back. He went to the shower and turned it on hot. He looked at the spunk that didn't get absorbed and was now dried to his pelvis. It made the memories come back to the front of his mind. Memories of the Sanitarium and of the first night he was taken there. He shivered and a quiet whimper came from him. He crawled into the shower and started to scrub hard at the mess like it was a dirty, filthy pot. Tears mixed in the water and he said, "I'M SULLY. I DESERVE IT. I NEEDED A CORRECTION."

The off-color didn't go away at first, but after a while, his pelvis was turning purple from the red of his marrow and his magic making a healing matrix. The pain of the hot water hitting the injured bone brought his mind back and he could see that his pelvis wasn't the color of the guard's cum. He stood under the water and let the clean water wash away the tears from his face. He got out. He didn’t feel clean, but he hadn’t felt clean in years. He got dressed carefully with his pelvis and arm and went back into his room. Berry took a few deep breaths before he twisted his fingers entering the room and sat on the knees in front of Howl, mostly to keep his pelvis off the floor, and asked, "WHAT DID YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT?"

Howl looked up from smoothing something out in his hands. "A FEW THINGS. FIRST OF ALL, I HAVE A GIFT FOR YOU, IF YOU'LL ACCEPT IT."

"I.." Berry didn't know what to say. He started to twist his fingers nervously, thinking, ‘I DON’T DESERVE A GIFT.’

"IT'S SOMETHING I MADE." Howl held up the finished product of his nighttime toiling. It was a soft blue bandana, fuzzy and knitted with a tight pattern. Slightly stretchy, but pretty stable. The black 'B' stood out in the front, bold and pretty. "I WAS HOPING YOU'D WEAR IT ALL THE TIME, LIKE A COLLAR." He paused, and then went on quickly. "I WAS UNAWARE WHAT COLLARS IN YOUR UNDERGROUND MEANT, BUT THEY'RE NOT LIKE THAT IN MINE. DAEMON WEARS MY COLLAR BECAUSE I PROTECT HIM AND CARE FOR HIM. I WOULD DO THE SAME FOR YOU IF YOU LET ME."

Berry was taken back at the proclamation. Howl was so kind. Even after he found out that Berry was Sully. He wanted to protect him, to keep him. He and Daemon brought him home. Berry nodded. "THANK YOU." He wiped away tears of joy. ‘HE REALLY WANTS TO KEEP ME.’ Berry was so relieved.

The sitting skeleton looked at the knitted work. It wasn't like his current collar. This bandana was so soft, warm, and Howl made it just for him. Berry felt so wanted, loved and happy at that moment, "I'LL GLADLY WEAR IT."

Howl smiled a rare, genuinely soft smile. "I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT." He offered the bandana to Berry, his arms stretched out to present it but not touching him. "IT HAS PLENTY OF PROTECTIVE AND NURTURING INTENT. IT SHOULD ALWAYS FEEL WARM AND SAFE."

Berry smiled at that and when he touched it, he was overwhelmed by the level of intent. He gently worked the material in his hands getting used to the intent before he went to put it on. Once he was ready it took a little puzzle solving with his broken shoulder, but it was worth it. It was soft and warm and it covered this sully collar, hiding his mark from the world. He pet it and ran his fingers over the knitting some more. At that moment he felt safe, wanted, loved. He let out a small happy purr. "THANK YOU."

"YOU ARE VERY WELCOME. I'M GLAD YOU ACCEPTED IT. NOW, THERE IS ONE OTHER MATTER I WANTED TO DISCUSS WITH YOU. IT IS, UNFORTUNATELY, A LITTLE HEAVIER." He laced his fingers together delicately. "STRETCH INFORMED ME OF THE LAWS OF YOUR KIND. THEY ARE UNACCEPTABLE. I'M GOING TO CHANGE THEM, BUT I'LL NEED YOUR HELP."

The purr died and Berry looked at Howl, confused. So many questions came to mind, but the one to make it past his teeth was, "HOW?"

"WITH MY CAMPAIGN, OF COURSE. I'M ALREADY GOING TO BECOME THE LEADER OF ALL MONSTERKIND, I CAN START BY DISMANTLING HORRIBLE LAWS LIKE THIS SULLY LAW. I WILL RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT IT TO EVERYONE AND EXPLAIN HOW WRONG IT IS, AND LOBBY FOR IT TO BE REMOVED."

Berry was in awe hearing Howl’s plan. This had to be a dream, but every dream had to come to an end. His happiness started to fall as he realized what might happen and said, "THE QUEEN WON'T LIKE BEING CHALLENGED. SHE'LL TRY AND STOP YOU."

"I AM NOT AFRAID OF HER," Howl scoffed. "IF I COULD, I'D KILL HER. BUT I CAN'T. SO I SHALL BEAT HER WITH POLITICS AND MAKE HER WISH I'D KILLED HER."

Berry admired Howl's boldness. He had no love for the monarch, but it also worried Berry. The Queen was strong and she was... well, the Queen. His brother, the Judge, could only claim Berry. He couldn’t get the laws changed. He was bound by magic to uphold the law. That was one of the reasons Stretch had been able to claim Berry.

The smaller skeleton wanted to believe in Howl. Would it really work? Could he stand up to a boss monster… The Queen herself? He started to squeeze the bandana. Soft, safe, warm, and from Howl. It calmed Berry a lot, but he was still worried. Then another question came to Berry. "WHEN YOU SAY 'RAISE AWARENESS,' YOU'RE GOING TO TELL THE FELL ABOUT SULLY?" He continued to rub the cloth between his phalanges, trying to gain more courage.

"YES," Howl said, crossing one leg over the other absently and resting his chin on both hands, his fingers still laced together. "THAT IS WHY I NEED YOUR HELP. IT IS NOT EASY TO TALK ABOUT TRAUMATIC EVENTS LIKE THIS ONE. I AM VERY MUCH AWARE OF THIS. HOWEVER, TELLING PEOPLE OF A REAL EVENT THAT HAPPENED BECAUSE OF THIS LAW WILL RAISE SYMPATHY. PEOPLE WILL BE POSITIVELY SLOBBERING FOR THE CHANCE TO GET REVENGE ON BEHALF OF YOU AND OTHER VICTIMS. ESPECIALLY THOSE FROM MY HOME, WHO ARE AWARE HOW IMPORTANT AND REVERED OMEGAS ARE. I HAVE LITTLE DOUBT THAT THOSE FROM VEX'S HOME FEEL THE SAME. I CAN'T SAY FOR SURE ABOUT THE CLASSICS, BUT IT'S A RISK I'M WILLING TO TAKE. BESIDES, EVEN IF THEY DON'T AGREE, THAT'S TWO CULTURES AGAINST TWO. THE HUMANS ALSO BALK AT SUCH TREATMENT OF PEOPLE, SO BY SHEER NUMBERS, THERE IS NO WAY WE WON'T BE VICTORIOUS. SO LONG AS THE MASSES HEAR A STORY THEY CAN FEEL SOMETHING ABOUT. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"

Berry flinched as if he was hit and took a step back. His fingers gripped tightly in the material. The small monster took a few gulps of air before saying, "I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT... I DON'T LIKE REMEMBERING."

"I KNOW, IT'S VERY HARD TO REMEMBER. AND I WON'T FORCE YOU. THIS IS A REQUEST, NOT A DEMAND."

A request, not a demand, that quieted the rising panic. Berry thought more about what Howl said and a part of what Howl said clicked. "OMEGAS ARE IMPORTANT TO FELL MONTERS?" He said in disbelief.

Howl nodded once. "YES, THEY ARE VERY HIGHLY VALUED IN MY CULTURE, AS THEY PROVIDE THE NURTURING AND STABILITY NECESSARY TO MAINTAIN STABLE ECONOMY, ORGANIZATION, AND OVERALL DAILY LIFE. THE ALPHAS WOULD TEAR EACH OTHER TO SHREDS WITHOUT US GUIDING THEM. WE KEPT SAVAGERY AND LAWLESSNESS AT BAY. WE RAISED THE YOUNG TO BE GOOD MEMBERS OF SOCIETY. WE KEPT PEOPLE'S HOPE FROM FAILING IN DARK TIMES. WE ARE LIKE A FLAME THAT LIGHTS THE WAY FOR EVERYONE ELSE."

"WOOWER...." It was like listening to a story. Omega were good. Needed. A light of hope. Berry wanted to be that. His hand snaked under the bandana and touched his Sully collar.

~~Dirty. Unclean. Sully.~~

"I CAN BE GOOD? I'M SULLY. "

"THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS SULLY," he said, his voice firm but not harsh. "IT IS MADE UP BY YOUR HATEFUL QUEEN. YOU ARE VERY GOOD. YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN SO, AND YOU WILL ALWAYS BE SO, AS LONG AS YOU VALUE MAKING THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE HAPPY."

Tears lined Berry’s sockets. Howl said he was very good. Only Stretch said that, knowing that he was a Sully. 'MAYBE....' Berry’s soul felt lighter as he considered Howl’s request, "IF I TELL ABOUT THE SANITARIUM, I'LL BE GOOD?"

"ONE IS NOT RELIANT ON THE OTHER. YOU CAN BE A GOOD PERSON AND NOT TELL YOUR STORY. I WOULD NEVER FORCE YOU. BUT IT WOULD HELP MANY PEOPLE JUST LIKE YOU. IN THE END, THE DECISION IS YOURS."

Berry thought about it. His hand slid away from his collar to the bandana. It gave him courage. He wanted the laws changed, he wanted to help, he wanted to be good, and helping others was good, "I WANT TO HELP."

Howl smiled again. "VERY WELL, I AM PROUD OF YOU FOR THAT. THANK YOU. WE CAN DO THIS ANY WAY YOU'D LIKE. FOR EXAMPLE, I DON'T EXPECT YOU TO GIVE A SPEECH TO THE MASSES IMMEDIATELY. YOU COULD START WITH TELLING OUR FRIEND GROUP, OR A THERAPIST. THERAPY CAN BE A GREAT HELP."

"I'M NOT SURE. I DON'T WANT TO BE ALONE.” Berry confessed, “WOULD YOU GO WITH ME TO THE THERAPIST?"

"IF THAT IS WHAT YOU WISH, THEN YES, OF COURSE. DAEMON CAN COME TOO, IF YOU'D LIKE. THERE ARE NO SECRETS BETWEEN THE TWO OF US."

Berry let out a breath of relief. Happy for the support. "OKAY."

"WHEN DO I HAVE TO TALK ABOUT IT?" He asked quietly. He needed time to prepare mentally for it.

"WELL... THE SPECIFICS ARE UP TO YOU. FOR THE THERAPIST, IT'S REALLY WHATEVER YOU WANT. YOU CAN SAY ANYTHING AND IT WILL STAY IN OUR CONFIDENCE. WHEN YOU'RE SPEAKING TO THE MASSES, YOU SHOULD MAINTAIN A DELICATE BALANCE OF CLINICAL TONE AND EMOTION. KEEP THE DESCRIPTION OF THE THINGS THAT HAPPENED TO YOU CLINICAL, BUT GO IN-DEPTH ABOUT YOUR EMOTIONS."

"I DON'T KNOW IF CAN..." Just thinking about some of his 'lessons' had Berry shivering in cold fear. He fingered the soft bandana, feeling the warmth and love in it. "BUT I'LL TRY."

"AS I SAID, NO ONE WILL FORCE YOU. JUST DO WHAT YOU CAN, BERRY. I AM PROUD ENOUGH WITH THAT."

Howl’s words filled him with determination, but he wasn’t ready for Howl to leave. "WILL YOU STAY WITH ME FOR A WHILE?" Berry asked. "WE COULD KNIT AND WATCH TV?"

"OF COURSE. THAT SOUNDS LOVELY." Howl pulled out his knitting again. "HAVE YOU BEEN PRACTICING?"

Berry nodded and hurried to the nightstand and pulled out his knitting and showed it proudly to Howl. There was the tell tail hourglass shape in spots of adding and dropping stitches in spots, but it didn't look too bad.

"THIS IS LOOKING PRETTY GOOD FOR A FIRST KNITTING. CAREFUL WITH DROPPING STITCHES, GO SLOW."

Berry beamed at the prize from Howl, "THANK YOU." He took the work back and headed downstairs with Howl.

* * *

Meanwhile, Daemon and Vex were trailing the wolf guard from his house to the Sanatorium. It was far out of the way, in a secluded area hidden off the highway. It made sense that no one would stumble upon it accidentally. Daemon watched the guard go in, then cracked his knuckles. "we're gonna have to put on disguises."

"RIGHT." Vex pulled on his leather gloves a little, tightening them, as they got out of the car to find the perfect place for an ambush. The next two guards that arrived were promptly knocked out. They took the clothes to put on. Vex's were a little tight and uncomfortable, but he'd deal. The unconscious guards were then ported away by Daemon, and they headed inside.

Once the two had passed the automatic locking doors with their confiscated badges, there was a long hallway leading to an elevator and a map to the side of it. The hall continued further past it. As they look closely at the map, most of the upper floors were listed as offices, archives, and private testing/training areas. The main floor seemed to have a large break/dining area and locker room for employees. The lower levers were listed as subjects and training rooms.

"WE DON'T HAVE TO BOTHER WITH THE MAIN FLOOR, AT LEAST NOT YET. LET'S DO THE LOWER FLOORS FIRST AND POKE AROUND." Vex said

Daemon replied, "good idea." They headed into the elevator. There was a slot just below the buttons. The elevator required the use of the badges as keys. Once they slid it in, it took the input from the call button. Shortly after there was a 'ding' doors opened for them to enter. There seemed to be 4 lower levels.

B1- Lesson/Training Area  
B2- Physical Restraints and Isolation Rooms  
B3- New Subjects Rooms /Intake  
B4- Permanent Subject Rooms

Vex decided to go to B1 first, to just creep around in order. They exited into the floor. It was quiet in the hall. They took an educated guess as they looked around that the rooms and halls were set up in a grid. The halls were the blinding clean white of a lab. A few guards they did not recognize were waiting outside a random door, talking about what they would do after work.

The door opened, and a person in a lab coat pushed out a quietly crying monster. They were naked, only wearing a Sully collar. The monster in the lab coat was talking to someone in the room. "...test is positive. The outlook is promising." They shoved the Sully towards the guards. "Return them to their cell."

The guards replied, "yes sir," and grabbed the omega’s upper arm and pulled them towards the elevator.

Howl and Daemon watched from a distance quietly. Only years of training from the royal guard helped keep Vex's emotions in check. The test was positive… What was the test? They moved to look into a nearby door.

**(PRETTY BAD CONDITIONING STARTS HERE)**

The room they peeked in had a large, soft, warm-looking nest in the middle of it. There was also an audio loop saying, "...Only good clean omegas can have privileges of nesting. Sully don’t deserve to nest..."

There were three monsters, all only wearing Sully collars. Each had a chain tethering them to the wall. There was a fourth chain on the unused wall.

Two monsters were curled up next to the nest just barely touching, seemingly trying to take comfort from the closeness, but looking longingly at it. The third monster was crying, looking to be at a breaking point. Their hands crept closer and closer. They gave in to the burning need for the comfort of the soft, warm nest. They touched the nest. A jolt of electricity made their body arch for a few blinding moments of pain before they fell to the ground. They convulsed a few times before whimpering and sobbing and backing away from it.

Daemon watched the third monster cry and convulse from touching the nest. His hands balled into fists. "berry cried when i tried to put him in bed," he whispered. "this must be why."

Vex's expression turned dark. "LET'S KEEP GOING." He moved to the next testing room.

They worked their way around the corner. There were many different tests and experiments in the rooms. Some clipboards noted the subject behaviors that were trying to be 'fixed.' Tests and treatments were wide and varied.

Vex watched one room, startled, as the omegas inside were knelt on the cold hard floor, naked and cuffed, with guards standing over them. They were chanting mantras, over and over, about what being a Sully meant, how bad they were, that being an omega was a horrible crime against monsterkind. Any that took too long of a pause in between words got smacked or punched. One guard had a crying monster's cuffed hand. "The more you resist your treatment, the more forceful you make us treat you." There was a sickening snap and the monster screamed as the guard grabbed their next finger. "Do you need another correction?" The monster struggled to resume their chanting between their sobs. The guards all looked entirely too pleased about it. Feeling sick, Vex and Daemon moved on.

On floor B2, when they entered the quiet halls, there were rooms with one-way mirrors where guards were trying to seduce omegas, reaching out, asking for hugs, purring out soft requests, and the omegas, many with bandages or bruises for past lessons, tried refused the comforting touches they so desperately wanted. The hurt monsters closed off and avoid their touches, trying to avoid 'tempting' the guards. Any omega that accepted a comfort or compliment got shoved and kicked.

Daemon and Vex took a quick break in the elevator. Neither said a word as they tried to keep calm and remember this was only a simple reconnaissance mission.

Too soon, the elevator dinged again and the doors to B3 open. It was a stark contrast to the last floor. Screams, lots of screams, speckled with loud pleads for it to stop. They were echoing down the hall.

As they searched the hall, omegas were flat-out being molested, by either one or more guards, who were cackling or insisting how bad the omegas were as they cried. Both interlopers were very shaken. Tense. They were barely keeping themselves in check when they reached B4.

The elevator doors opened to a quiet hallway, instantly putting them on alert. Unlike any of the other floors, this one was dimly lit. Feelings of despair and sadness stained the halls. The smell of desperation and sex hung in the halls.

"this is where the people no one will claim are," Daemon whispered. "they'll be here until they die."

"WHICH MIGHT NOT TAKE LONG, IF THEY'RE ABUSED ENOUGH TO FALL DOWN," Vex whispered back. Solemn, they started poking around.

The long hallway had doors that were spaced evenly. On each heavy metal door was a sliding window door to pass food through. When they looked through some of them, they noticed it was two monsters per room. A slate hung on either side of the cell as a bed and a single ruff blanket for each. Some monsters were at the opposite side of the cells sleeping on either on or below the 'bed.'

Other cells had monsters that were huddling together for comfort. They threw themselves apart and said they were being good. Begged not to have a correction. They pleaded that they were not touching, just sleeping next to each other as they crawled apart to the ends of the room.

In the last cell they checked, they found a wolf guard. He was raping one of the monsters. The other monster was curled up under the other bed crying softly, trying not to be noticed.

Vex and Daemon both looked grim when they recognize Cory. Vex again had to grab at Daemon's collar and pull him back before Daemon could lose his cool and attack.

**(HERE ENDS DEPICTION OF CONDITIONING)**

They took another breather in the elevator, before trying to head for the floor with the archives. But the elevator would not accept the input. The small screen said inefficient access.

Vex and Daemon exchanged a glance. "guess guards aren't allowed in."

"WE'LL HAVE TO GET DOCTOR BADGES, THEN."

"guess we gotta beat up another two jerks." He cracked his knuckles, a tight smile on his face. They went to the ground floor to see if they could isolate anyone.

The elevator opened to the ground floor. When they looked at the map next to it, they saw to the west was a gym area with lockers, and to the east was the lunch area. There was a monster in a lab coat heading into the lunchroom.

Vex moved quickly without processing much. A swift punch to the back of the head, and he grabbed the doctor's badge. Daemon helped drag the limp body with them, back to the elevator, and they went to the archive level.

The doors opened into the archive. It was a quiet area, only a hum of electricity in the air. There was a computer at one end hooked up to an impressive server. The other end held old paper records, mostly from the days in the underground.

They dragged the unconscious man towards the rows of paper records and shoved him in a corner, pulling a few boxes up to hide them from view. Then they started looking for Berry's file in the boxes.

It took a good chunk of time to find the files on Blueberry Aster. Most of the older files were stamped in big red letters on the covers, 'DUSTED.'

The number of files on monsters that were dead was disheartening to the two trespassers. Finally, they came across one small box, in the far back. the files were marked black with 'claimed' on them. They grabbed and read through Berry's file intently.

Berry's file was big, and there were photos of him throughout his stay. Documentation of broken bones for corrections and 'medical procedures'. It looked like Berry was started on standard therapy given to omegas: Aversion therapy, mantras, and tests that were administered by mostly the same 3 guards. Cory, Pert and Tal. There were a lot of reports of failure of tests.

The lack of improvement in Berry’s case had nominated him as a 'perfect candidate' for the new experimental 'treatments.' Experiments with determination. A set of notes talked about partial removal of two ribs to make access to his magical core easier when the bound monster was thrashing on the table. Listed under the images was scientific data that didn't make sense to either monster and notes of the aftermath of the treatments. There were sheets and sheets of detailed observation notes, anecdote records, and photos of piping insertion into the small, bound monster's sockets and his magic via the hole in his ribs. The images featured his magic being filtered through machines and merged with other chemicals and determination before being replaced.

One of the last observational notes talked about Berry’s bones becoming softer and sticky during the treatments. Another set of notes were about how dosage had been increased incorrectly, but the royal scientist corrected it before the 'treatment' was deemed unsuccessful and the subject was lost. The dosage was lowered and a random test for cognitive deterioration was started. The notes were written in wingdings that the royal scientist was going to restart the experiment when new base-level data was done being collected.

Thankfully, Berry was claimed by this brother shortly after.

The file shook ever so slightly in Vex’s hands. The documentation of broken bones and experiments was upsetting, and they'd even removed two ribs. He took a deep breath to settle his building rage. Then, Vex took pictures of each of the files with his phone quickly. He didn't think it prudent to risk taking them, but maybe Red could make sense of the data they were using. When that was done, he carefully slid the file back.

The elevator dinged and there was the familiar gruff voice of Cory whining, "yes, Dr. Gaster, I'm sure it was Blueberry, the skeleton. I know that omega's smell anywhere. He is out there tempting again."

The two of them froze at the sound of the elevator. Vex shoved the unconscious monster closer into the hiding spot and they hurriedly went around to a different row, out of sight, creeping as quietly as possible.

Gaster huffed. "We can't have that." He smiled. "We will have to have it returned for new training as the experimental training didn't work." He was heading down the aisle. He had been planning so much before the Judge came and took his best test subject.

Cory was fast on his heels. "When do you want me to get him?"

Gaster tsked. "You won't. They've got connections, his brother is a problem. I'll have to consult her Majesty." He pulled the file out. They headed back to the elevator.

The two infiltrators exchanged a glance. That wasn't good. Daemon pulled out his phone and quickly texted his brother, making sure it was on silent so any reply wouldn't give them away. What he got in response made him relieved. They waited for the two monsters to leave via the elevator, then crept back out.

Vex turned to his accomplice. "I THINK WE HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION. WE SHOULD LEAVE BEFORE WE'RE TRAPPED."

"good idea."

They were able to sneak out of the building without a problem. Soon they were back on the street, far enough away that the magic dampeners of the building didn't affect them.

"WE HAVE TO FIND A WAY TO GET BERRY TO SAFETY," Vex began, but Daemon shook his head with a smile.

"don't worry."

"WHY NOT?"

"my master already has it covered." Daemon ported them back to Vex's car so he could drive it home.

* * *

It had been a good day. Berry stayed in the house with Howl and his brother. They knitted and watched some food channel and quiz shows.

Berry was washing the veggies, careful of his shoulder. Howl told him not to cut them because of his injury. It didn't hurt right now. His brother had changed the wrapping on it and added healing salves.

Berry tried not to think about the bone and his lesson as he washed. He had out carrots, pearl onions, potatoes, thyme, and rosemary. All things Howl had said they needed for the stew.

Howl was currently looking over their red wine selection (two bottles) to see which would be better to use in the cooking. He picked out the merlot since they were making a beef and vegetable stew. He was dismayed that they didn't have anything more expensive to drink on its own, though.

Daemon arrived with a port, and nodded to them both, back in his usual clothes. "it's done, master."

"OH, GOOD. GO HOME AND GET ME THE VINTAGE MERLOT."

"which one?"

"THE 30 YEAR ONE I ALREADY OPENED WILL DO."

"okay, master. hiya, berry, be right back." He waved and was off again.

Berry waved at Daemon. "HI." He started to bring small loads of dried veggies over to the cutting board next to Howl. "HOWL," he asked, "BECAUSE THESE ARE SMALL ONIONS WE DON'T CUT THEM, RIGHT? I CAN PUT THEM IN THE POT?"

"YES, THAT IS CORRECT." He nodded. "ANYTHING SMALL ENOUGH THAT YOU COULD EAT IT IN ONE BITE DOESN'T NEED TO BE CUT UP. UNLESS IT'S SEASONING OF COURSE."

Berry smiled and put them in the pot and brought over the last of the veggies. "THEY'RE ALL WASHED."

"EXCELLENT. GOOD JOB." He started to cut the veggies with practiced ease, his hands bare of gloves and freshly washed. Daemon returned with the wine.

"want me to pour you some, master?"

"YES. AIR IT OUT FOR ME."

"of course." He found a wine glass.

Berry watch in awe as the knife moved with practice ease along Howl's knuckles. "WOOWER! YOU'RE FAST..." As Howl finished a veggie and scraped it over, Berry collected into a bowl and carried it to the roasting pot.

"SPEED COMES WITH PRACTICE. DON'T TRY TO MIMIC ME AND BE FAST YOURSELF WHEN YOU CUT VEGETABLES, OKAY? SAFETY IS MORE IMPORTANT. YOU SEE HOW I'VE CURLED IN MY FINGERS AND KEEP THE KNIFE AGAINST MY KNUCKLE SO THERE'S NO CHANCE OF CUTTING MYSELF? THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO DO."

Berry nodded, "I'LL GO SLOW AND BE GOOD," he reassured Howl. Soon, all the veggies were in the pot with the meat and broth. He yawned and rubbed at his sockets, but smiled happily. Once the stew was on the heat, he headed back to the living room. He was feeling drained and yawned again.

"hey, there bro." Stretch beckoned Berry over and rubbed the side of his arm. "you're looking pretty tired. why don't you go lay down for a bit."

"YES, IT'S ALRIGHT IF YOU TAKE A NAP. THE COOKING PART IS DONE FOR NOW," Howl agreed.

Berry nodded. "OKAY." He rubbed his sockets some more. "PLEASE WAKE ME WHEN IT'S READY. I DON'T WANT TO SLEEP THROUGH DINNER." He was looking forward to trying their joint project.

Stretch replied, "sure thing bro."

Howl looked to Daemon and beckoned. "YOUR BRIEFING?"

"of course, master." They went outside.

At that point, Vex arrived home as well via car. He watched them go and Berry get settled down, and then gently touched his mate's hand. "STRETCH? CAN WE GO SPEAK IN OUR ROOM?"

"oh, sure." Stretch took Vex's hand and headed up the stairs. "where were you all night?"

"WELL, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT." He made sure the door was closed before he turned to face Stretch and sat down. "AFTER WHAT HAPPENED TO BERRY, THE PEOPLE WHO'D... DONE IT... WERE AT THE BAR THAT RED WORKS IN. DAEMON AND I WENT TO SPEAK WITH THEM. MY HOPE WAS TO ARREST THEM, BUT IT SEEMS THAT ACCORDING TO YOUR LAWS, THEY CAN'T BE ARRESTED?"

Stretch looked angry. "That's right, but we can beat the crap out of them. We have a savings for bail."

He shook his head. "TEMPTING AS IT IS, THAT'S NOT GOING TO REALLY HELP. HOWL HAS DECIDED HE'S GOING TO GET THE LAW CHANGED SO THIS STOPS HAPPENING TO ALL OMEGAS. HE'S ALREADY MAKING PLANS. SO HE ASKED DAEMON TO FIND OUT WHERE THIS SANITARIUM IS AND WHAT EXACTLY GOES ON THERE."

The pregnant skeleton nodded in understanding and added, "the queen isn't going to like being challenged." He sighed and rubbed his tummy. "a lot of the swap monsters back the law, but maybe… now that we've been on the surface a while, they can stop being upset over a lack of rations."

"WELL, YES. THAT AND THE FACT THAT THEY'RE SEVERELY OUTNUMBERED. IN ANY EVENT, WE FOLLOWED A WORKER HOME LAST NIGHT TO FOLLOW HIM TO THE SANITARIUM THIS MORNING. WE MADE IT THERE AND SNUCK IN."

"oh man," He started to pat down Vex looking for any injuries. "you're okay, right? you didn't go alone, did you? you took red for backup? if you went alone so help us both...."

"OF COURSE I DIDN'T TAKE _RED._ HE'S ONLY GOT 1 HP ANYWAY. DAEMON WAS THERE. I'M ALRIGHT." He took Stretch's hand. "I'M FULLY CAPABLE OF TAKING ON A DOZEN IDIOTS IF NEED BE."

Stretch hugged Vex tight. He needed to make sure he wasn't dreaming. "berry would never tell me what happened in the sanitarium..."

"WELL, WE CERTAINLY FOUND OUT," he said bitterly. "WHAT THEY DO IN GENERAL _AND_ WHAT THEY DID TO BERRY SPECIFICALLY." He held Stretch tightly. "IT'S NOT GOOD, STRETCH."

"i want to know. i've tried to help him for the last three years. he refuses to talk about it. how can I help him if he won't talk to me?"

"ALRIGHT." He sighed quietly. "IT'S NOT JUST GIVING THEM RULES. IT'S TORTURE." Vex eyelights narrowed as he remembered. "THEY'RE ZAPPED IF THEY TOUCH A NEST. BEATEN IF THEY DON'T RECITE MANTRAS. RAPED REGARDLESS OF THEIR BEHAVIOR..." He looked away. "IT'S ONE WAY TO MAKE AN OMEGA STERILE... THEY'RE TOO TERRIFIED TO EVER FEEL SAFE."

Stretch's magic drained from his face, his pretty pregnant glow squashed under the horror he felt. He grabbed tight onto Vex. "oh, berry… brother... years lost to that…" He snuggled closer to his mate. "howl said that he would suggest therapy to berry… he never accepted the idea when i offered though." Stretch exhaled, sounded exhausted already. "we have to end these laws now."

"YES, YOU'RE RIGHT. THAT'S NOT THE WORST OF IT, THOUGH." He hesitated to continue. "THE ONES THAT DON'T GET CLAIMED... THEY'RE... EXPERIMENTED ON." His left hand subconsciously touched the back of his right, his secret hidden under the glove. "EVEN BERRY WAS, BEFORE YOU CLAIMED HIM. DID YOU KNOW HE'S MISSING TWO RIBS?"

"no..." stretch felt like he was going to be sick. "he doesn't like to be naked. even in front of me."

"THAT'S PROBABLY WHY, THEN. THEY REMOVED TWO TO REACH HIS SOUL EASIER... THEY WERE PUTTING THINGS IN HIM. CHEMICALS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT. I TOOK PICTURES AND SENT THEM TO RED, HE'LL PROBABLY BE ABLE TO FIGURE OUT THE SPECIFICS."

Stretch was livid. "what do we need to do to stop this?"

"WHATEVER WE CAN TO HELP HOWL GET THE LAW CHANGED. IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT HE'S STARTING HIS BIG PLAN TOMORROW."

He nodded into Vex's chest. He wanted to march down to the Queen's office and get himself arrested, but that wouldn't help Berry at all, so he held onto Vex.

Vex held onto his mate, rubbing his back. "WE _WILL_ FIX THIS," he vowed. "YOU LET US HANDLE IT. FOCUS ON THE BABY."

"he’s _my_ brother. I need to be involved." He held on to his alpha and protector. Vex was Berry's alpha too, now. "i believe in you, vex, but i want to help too."

Vex sighed. "VERY WELL, I'LL... I'LL THINK OF SOMETHING."

"howl got berry to think about going to see someone and opening up more." Stretch balled his fists. It hurt that Berry had entertained the suggestion from Howl, but when Stretch brought it up before, Berry would always close up and not talk. It stung. Stretch could have gotten him help sooner... but back in the underground, Blueberry was scared of others knowing. He didn't want to leave his room, most of the time, let alone the house. Stretch had paid for a new house in Snowdin, as far away as he could get Berry from the past at the Sanitarium in New Home. He gave his big brother a bandana to hide his hated collar behind. So no one in the Snowdin wouldn’t know about his brother and his secret. If Berry had agreed to get help back then, maybe they would have treated him as a Sully and told the town.... he didn't want to believe that, but.... Berry probably did. Stretch asked himself, 'was that why Berry didn't want to talk about it back then?'

"i'll start looking for a rape and trauma counselor online. maybe he will agree to see one. a human or tale monster... maybe howl will convince him... i know it's scary for him, but i won't let him back down from this again. we'll make sure he has support."

"YES, YOU CAN DO THAT. IT WAS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THEY WOULD BOTH ACCOMPANY HIM WHEN HE GOES."

Stretch nodded. "okay." He kissed Vex. "thank you for telling me." He then walked over to his computer and started his search. He needed to keep his frustration and temper under control, for Berry's sake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary: Howl and Stretch stay up late to keep Berry calm in his sleep. When Berry wakes up, he sees Howl asleep and makes him breakfast. He takes a shower to wash up and berates himself as he tries to get clean. Howl then gives him a just-knitted bandana to function as a collar, which in his culture promises protection and care. Berry accepts and uses it to cover his Sully collar. Howl then discusses challenging the Sully law and having Berry tell his story to gain support. Berry agrees, though he is nervous.
> 
> Daemon and Vex explore the Sanitarium by disguising themselves as guards. They see how the omegas are being abused, shocked whenever they touch nests, and taught to recite mantras about being worthless. They knock out a scientist and use his badge to find the files on Berry, and Vex takes pictures of them all before putting them back. Gaster and Cory arrive and they hide as the two discuss bringing Berry back for more 'correction.' When they leave with Berry's file, Daemon and Vex leave to return home.
> 
> Howl and Berry make dinner together, Berry careful not to aggravate his injury. When Daemon and Vex return, Daemon and Howl brief offscreen outside, and Vex goes to speak with Stretch alone. He tells Stretch all about what he saw, and Stretch is devastated and angry. He contemplates why Berry never asked for help, and decides he was probably scared. He sits down to find Berry a therapist.


	6. I Feel Sick to my Stomach, or am I Sick in the Head?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Vex needs lots of coffee, Stretch really needs a cigarette, Howl's secret comes to light, and plans are made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Take care that you've read the tags, by the way, they come in and out of relevance throughout the fic. They're not all exactly chronological, either.

The next morning, when Vex woke up, Stretch held onto him like a koala in his sleep. He gave a little squeeze and rubbed his lover’s back. They were both the younger brother, and stars did he know how painful and exhausting it was to be worried over a sibling. His mind had been racing most of the night, sleep even more coy than usual. For once, he'd rather not go to work. He wasn't sure if Howl would need backup, for one thing, and he knew better than to work himself to the extreme (now). But he didn't really have a choice. He would just have to take it easy, let his assistants handle most of the demonstrating today and focus on administrative duties at his studio.

Just then, Stretch’s phone started to play an obnoxiously loud song, waking him up. The pregnant monster rolled over and grabbed the phone off the nightstand and tossed it at the wall. 

Vex snorted quietly. “DON’T BREAK YOUR PHONE.” 

Stretch grunted but didn’t move to get up. 

Vex used his magic to pull the phone back over and handed it to Stretch, who gave a short moan of discontent as he pressed in the code and read the text. "my presence is required at a meeting at 10 am with the other diplomats, as the bitch is unable to attend.” He grumbled, getting reluctantly up and dressed.

“I NEED TO HEAD TO WORK TOO. GOOD LUCK, MY LOVE.” Vex kissed his mate goodbye and went to make an especially absurd amount of coffee to take with him for the day. 

Howl was settled on the couch, laptop in his lap, doing research. Daemon sat with Berry on the floor as Berry folded laundry, barbecue sauce in hand.

“I NEED TO GO TO WORK, BUT IF YOU NEED ASSISTANCE, PLEASE CALL ME," Vex said as he slipped into his unnecessary high-heeled boots.

“VERY WELL,” Howl replied, eyeing said boots with envy.

“HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY AT WORK,” Berry called out.

Daemon waved. “Bye.” 

By the time Berry finished folding a load of clothes, Stretch was coming down the stairs. He rubbed Berry's head as a greeting. “morning.” He grabbed a toaster pastry and threw it in to heat up. He thought about addressing his brother, but he wanted to have Howl talk to Berry first. He looked at the time and sighed before calling out, “hey, could ya give me a port to the embassy, daemon?”

Daemon hummed at the request, and checked in with Howl. "master, i'll be back soon, okay?"

"YES, OF COURSE."

Stretch came out with his breakfast, and Daemon took Stretch's hand with a smile, and they were off.

A few minutes after Daemon left, there was a knock at the front door followed by the doorbell ringing.

Howl looked up at the sounds. "I'LL GET IT, BERRY, PLEASE STAND BACK." He put the laptop aside and got up to answer the door.

Berry had come out of the laundry room with a new set of clothes to be folded. "OKAY"

Howl took a peek out the window before he opened the door. There, in all her royalty, was the Queen of Underswap. Her Captain of the guard was standing off to the side looking calm, but sad. Howl did not let them into the house, blocking the doorway.

Her majesty spat, "I am here for _my_ subject, Blueberry Aster."

Berry took a step back hearing the voice and shivered in his shoes as he came further into the room behind Howl. His voice was softer than normal as he replied, "I'm here, Your Majesty."

The Queen gave the small skeleton a dirty look, like one would give a filthy rat one had just found in the house. "It has come to my attention that _you,_ Sully, are freely tempting here on the surface. I will not have Underswap's reputation be dirtied by the likes of an unclean omega running amuck. You are hereby ordered to be returned to the Sanitarium for retraining and to remain there until you are deemed fit to be in society.” She pointed a righteous finger at Berry. “Captain."

Al stepped forward. She wouldn’t look at Berry. "Let's go, Berry." 

At the mention of the Sanitarium, Berry’s mind shut down. All he could think was ‘NO... NO... NO! NOT AGAIN!’ His bones rattled loudly.

Howl, still calm, put out a hand behind him to Berry. "LET ME HANDLE THIS, BERRY." He then put a fist to his chest and bowed. "GREETINGS, YOUR MAJESTY. I AM HOWL COATL, FORMER CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD IN FELLSWAP. IT'S A PLEASURE TO MEET A QUEEN OTHER THAN MY OWN, UNWORTHY AS SHE WAS OF THE TITLE." He straightened again. "I AM AFRAID YOU CANNOT TAKE BERRY AT THIS TIME. IF I MAY DIRECT YOUR ATTENTION TO HIS NECK, YOU CAN SEE THAT HE IS IN MY COLLAR."

Berry's mind couldn’t understand what was being said, but Howl was talking. The small monster was too scared to move, so he stood there and trusted Howl to keep him safe.

The queen looked at Howl. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Captain. I am sorry it wasn't under better circumstances." She glanced at Berry, then back to Howl, "I don't see any collar,” she sneered. "Just a cloth. A poor attempt to hide his Sully collar."

"IT MAY BE KNITTED AND WITHOUT A CLASP, BUT IT IS INDEED A CIRCLE OF FABRIC WITH MY MAGIC IMBUED AND HIS INITIAL ON IT, AND THAT MAKES IT MY COLLAR," Howl asserted. "HE HAS ACCEPTED IT, AND THAT MAKES HIM MINE. UNDER FELLSWAP LAW, HE CANNOT BE PROSECUTED, AS I TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR HIM. HOWEVER, YOU CANNOT TAKE ME IN HIS PLACE, BECAUSE I AM NOT YOUR CITIZEN. WE ARE AT AN IMPASSE."

Berry stood quietly behind Howl, his mind slowly coming back to him as he processed the words. The marked monster waited in fear of the answer.

"Howl, your laws are not ours. Perhaps this repugnant little omega has not told you, he is a Sully. A vile temptress of good monsters. Its training has failed it, so it needs to be reapplied. It is obvious you have fallen into its clutches. The best thing for all of monsterkind is for the Sully to be taken away. Please step aside."

"PRECISELY, MY LAWS AND YOUR LAWS ARE NOT THE SAME. I AM AWARE OF YOUR _FILTHY LITTLE_ LAW BLAMING VICTIMS FOR BEING TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF. I AM AWARE OF THE TORTURE YOU CONSIDER TRAINING. YOU WILL NOT GET YOUR WAY." He stood straighter, his chin up, an icy resolve in his periwinkle eyelights. "HE IS IN MY COLLAR, AND THAT MAKES HIM A FELLSWAP CITIZEN. HE HAS DIPLOMATIC IMMUNITY. IF YOU INSIST ON ATTEMPTING TO PROSECUTE HIM, THEN BY THE LAWS IN PLACE GOVERNING CROSS-CULTURAL DISAGREEMENTS, YOU'LL HAVE TO TAKE US TO COURT. I AM ALREADY PREPARING MY CASE. FEEL FREE TO PREPARE YOURS. THOUGH, I WONDER WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN WE INEVITABLY MEET IN FRONT OF A JUDGE AND JURY OF OUR PEERS, AND THE CITIZENS OF OTHER CULTURES LEARN THE DETAILS OF YOUR 'SULLY' LAW. GOOD DAY." He closed the door.

The Queen’s claws dug into her paws as she stared at the closed door. She turned away. "Come, Captain." Alphys followed, feeling a weird mixture of emotions.

Berry couldn't think about moving. He was squeezing his arms in a tight hug. He might wake up and be back at the Sanitarium. The Queen herself had come, but Howl got her to leave. He wasn't going back... tears of relief started to cascade down his face as that fact hit home. He squeezed himself harder just in case he was sleeping, yet he was still standing there next to Howl, breathing deeply. He wiped at his sockets. Once he found his voice, he called out in gratitude, "THANK YOU!"

Howl took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, and then turned to face Berry with his head tilted up and a proud look on his face. "SHE WON'T SOON FORGET THAT ENCOUNTER, I DON'T THINK. YOU DID WONDERFULLY, BERRY. I AM PROUD OF YOU FOR BEING SO BRAVE."

A look of confusion graced Berry’s face as he looked at Howl. "I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING."

"YOU WERE BRAVE. YOU DIDN'T GIVE IN AND ACCEPT THEIR TERMS. YOU TOLD ME EVERYTHING I NEEDED TO KNOW TO PROTECT YOU. AND YOU ACCEPTED MY COLLAR, WHICH WAS THE BEST WAY TO KEEP YOU SAFE. ALL OF THAT WAS YOU, NOT ME."

Small hands went up and grabbed the new collar. Berry felt the warmth and intent from it. "I DID? I DID," he said with more confidence and cleaned his face up some more. He looked out the window. "SHE WASN'T HAPPY. SHE'S GOING TO GO TO COURT."

"YES, I ASSUMED SHE WOULD. BUT THAT IS FINE. NOW THAT THE STAGE IS SET, I CAN BEGIN DRAWING ATTENTION TO IT. I WILL BE ANNOUNCING THESE COURT PROCEEDINGS TO THE LEADERS OF ALL MONSTERS AND TO THE NEWS REPORTERS, AND OBTAIN WHAT POLICE PERMISSION I CAN TO INVESTIGATE THE SPECIFICS OF THE LAW."

Berry listened carefully and twisted the bandana and asked nervously, "DOES THAT MEAN I WILL HAVE TO TALK SOON?"

"SOON IS RELATIVE, BUT YES. WITHIN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS. I HEAR YOUR BROTHER ALREADY FOUND US A THERAPIST, THOUGH. THAT SHOULD HELP."

Berry looked down and squeezed his bandana. He wasn't looking forward to that. He hoped one time would be enough.

"REMEMBER, IT'S WHATEVER YOU'RE COMFORTABLE WITH."

"OKAY... THANK YOU, HOWL." Berry really could use a hug. Daemon and his brother were good at hugs. They made hugs feel safe. Would Howl want to hug…? "HOWL, WOULD IT BE OKAY IF I HUGGED YOU?'

Howl tensed up a little at the question, his arms drawing up around himself before he quite realized it. He forced them to drop again, frowning. "NO, ACTUALLY, THAT IS... NOT ACCEPTABLE." He looked off to the side. "PERHAPS WE COULD TOUCH HANDS?"

Berry was confused, he thought a bit about it. He didn't want to make Howl uncomfortable. Howl had helped so much, and now he was just scared? It brought back memories of others pulling away once they had known the horrible truth of what he was. 

~~Filthy, dirty Sully. Forcing yourself on good clean monsters~~ , the voice reminded him.

'Howl had not seemed to mind that I was Sully before,' he thought, but Howl had never touched Berry, now that he thought about it. "I WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO TOUCH HANDS. IF YOU'RE OKAY WITH THAT?" Berry held out his hand. ‘I’LL TAKE THIS, IT HAS TO BE ENOUGH,’ he told himself.

"YES. THAT IS FINE. MY APOLOGIES. I AM TOUCH-AVERSIVE TO EVERYONE, NOT JUST YOU." He reached out with his own hand, clad in that soft cotton. It paused a few centimeters away, then settled on top of Berry's. He just held it, his grasp gentle. Sharp blue eyelights lifted from their hands to Berry's face.

Berry smiled at Howl when he said it wasn't just him. Some of the knots in his nonexistent stomach settled. It wasn't because he was Sully. Berry didn't move as Howl touched his hand. The glove was soft and warm in his hand. The short monster took the small offering and smiled brightly when Howl looked him in the face. "YOUR GLOVES ARE NICE."

"THANK YOU. I MADE THEM MYSELF. I DON'T MUCH LIKE TO TAKE THEM OFF."

"I CAN UNDERSTAND. THEY'RE VERY SOFT AND WONDERFUL." Berry kept his hand still. "YOU ARE VERY CRAFTY."

"YES, SOFTNESS IS WHAT I WAS GOING FOR." He squeezed gently. "I AM GOOD AT MANY THINGS. I MAKE IT A POINT TO BE."

The softness gently encircled Berry's hand, and his soul did flip flops as Howl squeezed. It was like the most tender of hugs. A blush bloomed across his face and he looked at Howl, smiling.

Howl watched Berry blush and felt a twinge in his own soul. He wasn't letting go just yet. "I DON'T MIND THIS. WE CAN HOLD HANDS WHENEVER YOU'D LIKE."

"REALLY?" he asked in awe. His eyelights morphed into stars. "THANK YOU. FOR EVERYTHING, HOWL." Berry tenderly squeezed back.

"YES, REALLY. YOU KNOW, DAEMON IS VERY ATTACHED TO YOU." He said it as if he weren't, so casual, but there was a faint flush to his cheekbones.

"He is?" Berry asked, a little shocked by the news. "I LIKE HIM A LOT TOO." He rubbed Howl's hand with his thumb. "I LIKE YOU BOTH A LOT."

~~Temptress! Unclean! Sully!~~

"I'M SORRY. I KNOW IT'S BAD. I'M BAD, I'M TEMPTING!" He wanted to pull his hand away, but it was so soft, so safe.

Howl shook his head. "IT'S NOT BAD," he said firmly. "YOU'RE NOT TEMPTING ANYTHING. THERE IS NO TRICKERY. WE SIMPLY HAPPEN TO LIKE YOUR PERSONALITY. ALSO, HE THINKS YOU'RE CUTE."

The blue blush deepened when Howl said that and he became a neon sign when he said Daemon thought he was cute. Maybe he wasn't...

~~TEMPTRESS. SULLY! MAKING GOOD MONSTERS FALL INTO YOUR GRASP, VILE TEMPTRESS! BAD!~~

Memories of lessons, including his last one outside the center, filled him.

~~YOU DESERVE THIS. YOU MAKE GOOD MONSTERS DO THIS. IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! YOU'RE A VILE TEMPTRESS!~~

The blue flush left quickly and Berry flinched, pulling away and shaking. "I... IT IS. I'M BEING BAD... I'M SORRY. I WANT TO BE GOOD. I'M SORRY." 'I CAN'T HAVE THIS...' Berry told himself.

Howl let Berry pull away and folded his arms, watching Berry's reaction. "YOU ARE NOT BEING BAD," he asserted. "LOOK AT ME. I'M NOT TRYING TO TOUCH YOU. I'M NOT ATTEMPTING TO-" his expression twitched into a mildly disgusted one- "HAVE SEX WITH YOU. I'M MERELY SPENDING TIME WITH YOU. TOUCHING YOUR HAND. LIKE FRIENDS. HOW COULD THAT BE BAD?"

"FRIENDSHIP IS GOOD BUT ASKING FOR MORE. WANTING MORE...TOUCHING LEADS TO TEMPTING..." Correction after correction. Beating after beating. He squeezed the bandana, looking for comfort from the memories. "I WANT TO TOUCH YOU.” He amended, “WANTING IS BAD… IT LEADS TO TEMPTING."

"I ASSURE YOU, YOU CAN'T 'TEMPT' ME INTO BECOMING A _RAPIST._ IT SIMPLY WON'T HAPPEN. IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PERSON IN POWER TO CONTROL THEMSELF AND NOT TAKE ADVANTAGE OF YOU. NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND. YOU WERE TAUGHT WRONG."

Berry looked up Howl and squeezed the bandana tight, shaking. He didn't know what to say to that. He wanted Howl to be right. He didn't want to be bad. 

~~Temptress! Sully!~~

But everyone in Underswap who knew he was Sully, with only his brother as an exception (family is all a Sully has), had told him, again and again, it was his fault. They had beaten that fact into him. ‘I’M AN OMEGA. THEREFORE, I AM BAD.’ 

He had begged the monster not to use him that night he went looking for food for Stretch and himself. The guards had come from his screaming as he was being raped, and they arrested him for tempting his rapist into the vile act. He was taken to the Sanitarium… They made sure Berry knew it was his fault...

Howl said that it was wrong...

Berry shook, tears falling from his sockets, and slowly sank to the ground.

Howl knelt down beside him, wishing Daemon were back so he could help. There was only so much he could say... "LISTEN TO ME, BERRY," he said quietly. "YOU DIDN'T WANT WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU, RIGHT? YOU NEVER WANTED IT. HOW COULD IT BE YOUR FAULT IF YOU DIDN'T WANT IT? THEY BLAME YOU TO ESCAPE THE BLAME THEMSELVES."

"I NEVER WANTED IT, BUT IT HAPPENED OVER... AND OVER..." He had a faraway look in his eyelights. "I ALWAYS FAILED THE TEMPTING TEST... I MADE THEM USE ME... EVERY TIME... " He hugged himself and started to cry harder. "I AM BAD! THEY MADE SURE I KNEW HOW BAD I AM! OVER AND OVER!" He took a few deep breaths. "then when they couldn't cure me..." he said quietly, slipping into lowercase and wrapping one arm around the hole in his ribs and the other over his left socket, "Dr. Gaster tried the experimental treatments...to cure me."

"YOU DID NOTHING OF THE SORT!" he hissed. "YOU DIDN'T _MAKE_ THEM! THEY HAVE THEIR OWN MINDS AND THOUGHTS AND MORAL COMPASSES AND THEY. _CHOSE._ TO HURT YOU. ON PURPOSE. WITH THEIR OWN WORTHLESS LITTLE BRAINS. THEY MADE THAT DECISION. OVER AND OVER. BECAUSE THEY WANTED TO. BECAUSE THEY ENJOYED IT. THEY ARE _SCUM_ AND YOU ARE BETTER THAN THEM." His hands balled into fists. "AND THAT MAN IN PARTICULAR… _GASTER_ … HE HAD NO INTEREST IN CURING YOU. HIS INTEREST WAS _USING_ YOU FOR HIS OWN GAINS."

Berry kept crying. The memories hurt. He always tried to push them back to the deepest darkest part of his mind and they had crashed into the light and into him. He sat there holding himself for a long while. Trying to believe Howl’s words, but it was hard to entertain the idea. Eventually, he had no energy left to cry and sat there shaking and sniffling.

Howl didn't know what else he could do. Watching Berry break down was viscerally uncomfortable. It brought back his own unwanted memories from many years prior. How small he had been then, a fraction of his current puny height, no high-heeled boots to give him an edge, no soft gloves to feel and know safety. No older brother with his smiling face and relaxed slouch and warm eyes. There was only his frail form and the dark room, a cold touch. _Father's horrible smile and voice,_ **_reaching fingers..._ **

He punched the wall, his teeth grit and his sockets narrowed to teary little slits. His hand shook against the small hole he'd made in the plaster.

Berry jumped when he heard the crunch of bones hitting the wall and looked up, wide-eyed. 

"master?"

Daemon's voice came soft, careful, quiet. He was kneeling beside Howl, a respectful space between them, his hands clasped and harmless.

"do you need to go?"

Howl took a deep breath, then stood up and dusted off his hands. "FOR NOW. I WILL BE BACK. TAKE CARE OF BERRY. AND TELL STRETCH I WILL FIX HIS WALL LATER."

Daemon dipped his head, staying knelt below his brother's eye level. Howl left by the front door, rubbing the bruises on his knuckles.

Daemon turned to Berry, sitting cross-legged. "what can i do to help?"

Berry curled up into a ball and wiped at his sockets. He berated himself along with the voice for making Howl that upset. Howl was always kind and was making things better and Berry had ruined it. He hoped Howl wouldn't ask for the collar back. 

He heard Daemon ask to help. He wanted to hug him, to be engulfed in the warm safety, but he couldn't ask. Not only did the voice call him bad, but he upset Howl. He didn't deserve the softness. The warmth. The safety. "I'M SORRY," he said softly.

"it's not your fault... master has his own problems too." He drooped a little. "he knows a little of how you feel..."

Berry looked up at Daemon. "HE DOES?"

He nodded sadly. "master... howl is a victim too. our father was a bad man. a very bad man. he hurt howl a lot as a kid."

"OH," Berry wiped his sockets again as he thought about that. He looked off in the direction Howl had left. 

"DID YOUR FATHER USE HIM, LIKE HOW I TEMPT OTHERS?" Howl was always so strong. So sure about everything... He was a victim, he knew what it was like to be used and he said it wasn't Berry's fault.

"yeah... it's not really my place to give details. but he was just a kid, you know? a small kid. he didn't know the first thing about heats or what it meant to be an omega, but the bad man did that stuff anyway. you can't blame a kid for an adult being like that... right...?"

Berry shook his head no. He would never blame a child, they had no idea what was going on. It had been Berry's first heat. He was just barely becoming an adult when he went out and was taken. He didn't know better either.

Berry rubbed his arms. He really wanted a hug. "I DON'T WANT TO TEMPT. I WANT TO BE GOOD, BUT I WANT A HUG...."

Daemon opened his arms. "you can hug me any time. i like giving hugs. and there's no way you can tempt me, i'm a good boy."

Berry smiled at Daemon and slowly leaned in and hugged him. It was tighter than the other times he hugged the taller skeleton. He took in shaky breaths and started to relax in the warmth, so wonderfully warm and safe arms.

The tall alpha hugged him with a gentle squeeze, safe and warm and strong. That protective aura was back, wafting through the room. "yeah, there you go. you're good at hugs, like me!"

The smaller skeleton gave a little snort at that. "YOU'RE A LOT BETTER THAN ME, BUT THANK YOU." 

"that's okay, practice makes perfect." He rubbed Berry's back a little. All the strong emotions had worn Berry out and Deamon's aura was so warm and safe. His sockets started to drift shut. Daemon saw this and smiled. "you can take a nap if you want. i'll protect you. i'm a good guard dog."

"I'M NOT TEMPTING YOU, AM I?" Berry was just barely hanging on to consciousness.

"of course not, you could never do that."

Berry nodded against Daemon's ribs and let himself fall asleep.

Daemon carried him to the couch and settled down, petting Berry's head gently. He’d said he would protect Berry, and he meant it.

When Howl returned an hour later, it was with a bucket of plaster. He promptly started to fix the hole, quiet. Daemon left him be.

* * *

Berry woke up. He had a slight headache and didn't feel too great.

That was when he noticed his pillow felt a little boney. At first, he thought he fell asleep on his brother. He was laying on something warm that smelled safe and wonderful… and a little spicy like barbecue sauce? Stretch smelt of sugar and sweets. Not delicious tangy barbecue sauce. He really wanted something in said condiment right about now. He was pretty hungry. 

Berry forced his sockets open, then blinked a few times seeing Daemon.

He could feel a little wet spot of drool on his pillow and wiped at his face, blushing fiercely. 'I DROOLED ON DAEMON!'

"I'M SORRY..."

Daemon stopped petting Berry's head when he awoke, smiling down at the smaller skeleton. "hiya! sorry about what?"

Berry reached over and grabbed a blanket on the couch and he blotted Daemon's shirt with it. Blushing brightly he said, "I GOT YOU DIRTY."

"oh, that? don't worry about that." Daemon shrugged with a little grin. "i'm just happy you got some rest."

The shorter skeleton blotted it a little longer. His fingers lingered a while on the spot. "YOU ARE TOO KIND." Berry's instinct told him to curl back up in that warm safety and never leave. 

He forced his hand away and rolled the blanket up into a ball to take to the wash.

"HAVE YOU EATEN?" More of the morning came back to him. He looked around. "IS HOWL BACK? THE QUEEN IS REALLY MAD AT US. HE PROBABLY SHOULDN'T BE ALONE."

"i haven't, but howl is back. he's making lunch right now, it's almost done. soup, i think."

Berry's soul settled happily knowing Howl was safe. "I'M GLAD HE’S SAFE." He couldn't think of a reason to stay in Daemon's lap. He smiled at Daemon. "THANK YOU FOR TAKING CARE OF ME."

"anytime," Daemon promised. "whenever you want, just let me know. i'm a good guard dog~"

Berry climbed down and went to take the blanket to the laundry. Daemon watched him go, then went to peek into the kitchen. Howl was halfway done with a glass of wine, which was mildly worrying, but lunch was also just being finished up.

Blue put in a load of wash and took a few deep breaths and thought about what to do. Howl had had bad things happen to him, he was so strong, brave, smart and handsome... Berry blushed a little thinking that. 

Berry would be worthy of being collared by Howl; he was doing so much for him. Berry had cried and made Howl mad, so he had to make up for it. He was useful. He wanted to do better, he had to be _good_.

He came into the kitchen and saw Howl drinking. "HI... MAY I HELP? I CAN SET THE TABLE."

Howl looked over from finishing off the glass of wine. "THAT'S FINE," he said, setting the glass down. As he moved the pot of soup off the hot burner, he debated having another glass. Probably not a good idea. It was early to get drunk.

Berry nodded and got all the supplies and set the table for three. He wasn't sure what to talk about, anything from this morning seemed taboo... so he stayed quiet and focused on the task.

After a minute or two, Howl broke the silence. "DAEMON TOLD YOU. ABOUT ME."

Berry fingered his bandana and nodded. "HE TOLD ME YOU'RE BRAVE AND STRONG. THAT YOU CAN UNDERSTAND ME A LITTLE." He ducked his head, "THAT'S WHY YOU SAID IT WASN'T MY FAULT.... BECAUSE IT WASN'T YOUR FAULT EITHER."

"YES." He wound up pouring that second glass after all. "I WAS HARDLY FIVE YEARS OLD THE FIRST TIME. IT TOOK SEVEN YEARS TO ESCAPE, BUT I DID. I KILLED HIM FOR HIS TRANSGRESSIONS. I HARDENED MYSELF. I BECAME LIKE ICE. AND I VOWED TO NEVER AGAIN ACCEPT BEING MISTREATED. I WILL CRUSH ANYONE WHO TRIES TO HURT ME."

Berry nodded. "YOU DIDN'T DESERVE THAT." He sat on the chair. "DAEMON'S HERE FOR YOU. I AM HERE FOR YOU. WE WON'T MISTREAT YOU."

"YOU'RE RIGHT. I DIDN'T." Howl brought the soup to the table. "I KNOW YOU WON'T. YOU HAVE MY TRUST. THEREFORE, YOU ALSO HAVE MY PROTECTION."

Berry reached up to his new soft collar, running its softness between his fingers, and smiled. His fear about Howl taking the collar back quieted with that statement.

Howl served everyone a bowl of soup, then settled down with his wine. Daemon came and settled in too.

Berry took a few bites of the soup. "THIS IS REALLY GOOD. THANK YOU FOR MAKING LUNCH." He took a few more bites before asking, "STRETCH SAID HE FOUND A THERAPIST... HE SAYS THEY'RE REALLY GOOD AND COULD HELP ME A LOT... IF THEY CAN..." He remembered Howl said he would too. "MAYBE YOU WILL TALK WITH THEM TOO? THEY CAN HELP US BOTH..."

"WELL, I WAS ALREADY GOING TO TALK A LITTLE TO HELP YOU. BUT IF YOU MEAN FOR MY OWN GAINS... PERHAPS IT IS A GOOD IDEA."

Berry smiled at that. He looked at Daemon. "did you want to talk to them too?"

"oh, me?" He scratched at his cheek a little. "well, none of that ever happened to me, so i dunno if i need to... but i can talk if you want me to, berry."

Berry smiled at him. "NOT IF YOU DON'T WANT TO, THAT IS FINE." Berry didn't want to force either of them. He took a few more bits of soup. 

"it's okay, i don't mind talking about anything." Daemon smiled

"OKAY." Berry wanted to relax with the two brothers until Stretch got home. "DO YOU TWO WANT TO WATCH IRON CHIEF AFTER WE EAT?"

"AH YES. IRON CHEF. A VERY INFORMATIVE SHOW." Howl nodded approvingly. "THAT SOUNDS ACCEPTABLE." He was almost done with his own lunch and wine, himself.

Berry smiled happily. Their love and support was making his confidence improve slowly but surely. Daemon and Howl were more than he'd ever dared to dream of finding in this life. Spending this time with them almost made him forget about being Sully, and he secretly prayed to any deity that would listen that he wouldn't lose them. That this would last. 

The horrible voice reminded him ~~the deities never listened to the prayers of a Sully before. Dirty temptresses don't deserve anything but to dust slowly~~.

He shook this head, trying not to listen. He'd seen his share of monsters slowly falling. He had been sure he was going to fall too, before his brother claimed him. So even if the deities didn't listen to him, they would listen to Howl. He thought, 'howl would make them listen.'

After lunch was done, Howl cleaned up everything. Then they were happy to settle in and wait for Stretch to return home.

* * *

It wasn't until almost 4pm when Stretch popped into the living room with Sans. He looked exhausted. He sat down on the couch by Berry. "Hey everyone. How was your day?"

Daemon made room for him on the couch. "hiya, stretch, hi sans." He'd popped out for a smoke a little while ago, but he had hopefully covered up the smell with the barbecue sauce he was drinking. "umm, well, while we were gone..."

"I SPOKE TO YOUR QUEEN. A HORRIBLE WOMAN, REALLY." Howl set aside the knitting he'd been working on.

Berry curled up into Daemon’s side and hid his head.

Stretch blinked owlishly. "what now? Why did she come here?"

Sans took a seat on a chair. "i get the feeling i'm missing something?"

"ahhh, yeah, kind of a lot, sorry," Daemon said sheepishly to Sans. "something really bad happened to blue the other night."

"YES. SHE CAME TO TRY AND TAKE BERRY BACK TO THAT AWFUL PLACE." Howl narrowed his sockets just thinking about it. "HOWEVER, I STOPPED HER WITH A FEW LEGAL LOOPHOLES. SHE CAN'T TAKE HIM WHILE HE'S IN MY COLLAR, NOT WITHOUT A FIGHT. WE'RE GOING TO GO PUBLIC ABOUT ALL THIS."

Stretch's face slowly morphed from confusion to fear to anger. "How dare she!" His hands clenched the arm rest. "She was absent today due to conflicting appointments. She made sure I wasn't here by summoning me away so she could get Blue!"

He was livid. As the adult family that had claimed Blueberry's, he was to be connected with his behavior. She had known Stretch wouldn’t let Blue be returned for retraining. That he would send Blue into hiding. 

"The crafty bitch." He got up and started to pace the room. He wanted a smoke so bad. He reached for a sucker substitute.

Sans looked to Berry hiding. He frowned. "so she summoned you knowing you had to answer and leave. so she could take berry where?"

Berry said almost too quietly to be heard, "I'M SULLY. I TEMPTED MONSTERS LAST NIGHT I MADE THEM BE UNCLEAN..."

"YOU KNOW THAT'S NOT TRUE, BERRY," Howl said sharply. "YOU DID NOTHING OF THE SORT." He folded his arms. "THEY DECIDED ALL BY THEMSELVES TO BE HORRIBLE, CRUEL RAPISTS."

Berry flinched when Howl said that. He had been trained into believing that. He felt confused. He didn't want it to be true, but it was hard not to believe it.

"she tried to take berry to the sanitarium…” Daemon said, “to punish him for being an omega."

Sans couldn't believe what he was hearing. "what?" Someone raped Berry. Berry... no someone's.... and Berry was being blamed? Punished even. "who hurt you, berry?"

Stretch was seething. "Sans, you remember how my Queen had some laws the other didn't like? They refused to accept them. Berry falls under these horrible laws. His rapists are protected by it. The law places the blame on Berry."

"YES. BUT NOW HE'S IN MY COLLAR, SO BY FELLSWAP LAW, HIS ACTIONS ARE MY RESPONSIBILITY. I PREVENTED HER FROM TAKING HIM AWAY, FOR NOW," Howl assured. "BUT THIS MEANS WE MUST ACT. WE MUST GET THE PUBLIC INVOLVED. EXPOSE THESE LAWS AND FIGHT FOR THE RIGHTS OF THE SWAP OMEGAS."

"master can do it. i know it. but we all have to help." Daemon set his jaw firmly.

"that's insane." Sans was appalled. "how could anyone?" He looked to Berry, still hiding away tucked into Daemon's side. Sans looked to Howl. "yes, i’m in."

Berry looked up at Sans in shock. Howl had said the others would help, but it was hard to believe that. Others in Underswap never treated him the same after finding out he was Sully.

Daemon hugged Berry gently. "see?" he asked with a smile. "we all want to help you. we like you."

Berry smiled softly at Daemon's words and cuddled into the safety of his embrace.

Stretch nodded. "It goes without saying Vex and I will help too. How are we going about getting the public involved?"

"THE FIRST STEP IS TO CALL A LAWYER," Howl decided. "THEN WE SCHEDULE A PRESS CONFERENCE. WE TELL PEOPLE WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT UNITING THE MONSTERS UNDER ONE LAW SYSTEM AND GO A STEP FURTHER IN CONNECTING TO THE HUMANS. EVERYONE IS INTERESTED IN THAT. THEY'LL TUNE IN TO WATCH AND WE'LL ANNOUNCE THE TRIAL TO OVERTURN THE SULLY LAW."

Sans agreed. "i know king fuzzybuns will help back this too."

Daemon snuggled up happily and nuzzled the top of Berry's skull. His scent came out again, though he tried to contain it. Safe, protective alpha pheromones to soothe Berry. Berry relaxed into Daemon's scent. He felt safe like this.

Sans raised a brow bone at the scent. He wouldn't have thought of Daemon as an alpha. But he decided not to say anything about it for right now.

"that sounds good.” Stretch nodded. “Did you have a lawyer in mind?"

"HMM..." Howl looked over to Sans. "DIDN'T YOU SAY YOUR BROTHER WAS IN LAW SCHOOL?"

At Howl’s question, Sans perked up. He said proudly, "yes, he is. he's smart and passionate. he said laws are perfect for him because you settle everything by talking it out. he took the human bar test this week and passed. he's so cool!"

Stretch started to calm down and sat back down.

"THEN HE IS WHO WE WILL CALL," Howl decided. "IT'S PERFECT. I HAVE YET TO MEET HIM."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHOOO LOOK WHO WE FINALLY GOT TO ADD IN! Bet y'all are happy about that, huh~? Please leave a kudos and comment if you like our fic! Next chapter in a week!


	7. I Can't Do This All On My Own, No I Know, I'm No Superman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which lines are drawn, a plan is made, and many continents are consumed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you are all enjoying the story. Please leave a comment letting us know and a kudos. <3

As the details of the plan were hashed out, Howl almost instinctively reacted to Daemon's scent, his own omega pheromones attracted to that of his brother. His homely, nurturing, and guiding feelings mingled with the protectiveness in a balanced mix. They smelled like they were constantly on the same wavelength.

"it's a great plan," Stretch said, "but as much as it pains me to say this, keep the details of the case from me. as the royal judge, i am bound to the queen by magic. if she summons me, i have to answer."

"i understand," Sans told the other in confidence, "i'm the undertale judge, but undertale was against the law and the idea of the sanitarium. as far as we were aware, she didn't rebuild the sanitarium topside."

"VERY WELL. NOT THAT MY TACTICS ARE EVER UNDERHANDED. I ALWAYS FOLLOW PROTOCOL." Howl nodded.

Stretch purred at the scents in the air. Now he was calmed down, he relished the strong, protective alpha and nurturing homely omega pheromones. He wasn't used to omegas having a protectiveness. Maybe when he was young right before Berry was taken, he could kinda remember feeling that from Berry's scent too. It dawned on the pregnant monster that the smells were not coming from whom he thought they would. He looked at the two monsters closely. Neither acted as he believed they should. "Howl, you're an omega?"

Sans was looking at them too, now that Stretch had mentioned it. He was shocked too. Howl was definitely strong, bold, opinionated, and goal-oriented. Not traits he would think of in an omega. Daemon was loyal, quiet, obedient. Not a typical alpha. Sans smiled and gave a small chuckle. These kooky skeletons were very different, but would be good for Berry. He thought, ‘Howl would be a good role model for Berry.’

Berry was very responsive to both scents. He struggled into Daemon more and felt warm and safe. He took in a blissful breath of the scents. Howl wanted to keep him. Daemon wanted to protect him. It was more than he thought he was allowed, but he didn't care. He wanted this soul-deep. He knew a punishment would be coming and the voice was right, he needed a correction. But he closed his sockets and purred softly anyway. They would keep him safe from punishment for now.

The question surprised Howl. He didn't quite realize he'd reacted to Daemon's pheromones. "AH, YES. I AM INDEED AN OMEGA. IT HAS ALLOWED ME CERTAIN PRIVILEGES UNDER MY OWN LAW. AFTER ALL, DAEMON IS IN MY COLLAR TOO."

Daemon snuggled Berry, his soul thudding warmly at the sound of that soft purring. "master keeps me grounded. i don't have to be aggressive if he's taking care of me."

Sans nodded. That made sense. A controlling and powerful omega could keep his family and love under their control.

Stretch blinked a few times as that was processed. Privileges? That was a foreign concept. Omegas with privileges? "What are the laws in your underground?" he asked curiously.

"Howl is good at taking care of others," Berry said softly. "And Daemon is too."

"we try, yeah~ i'm a good boy." Daemon kissed Berry's forehead.

Howl shifted in his seat, lacing his fingers together. "THEY ARE MORE GEARED TOWARDS SURVIVAL WITH A LOW POPULATION, NOT A HIGH ONE. DUE TO THE NATURE OF THE 'KILL OR BE KILLED' MINDSET NURTURED BY THE PRESUMED UP-COMING WAR WITH THE HUMANS, RAISING POWERFUL MONSTERS WAS TOP PRIORITY. IF THE ALPHAS WERE LEFT IN CHARGE OF EVERYTHING, THE KILLINGS WOULD BE SENSELESS AND SOCIETY WOULD BE PUT BY THE WAYSIDE. THEREFORE, OMEGAS WERE FAVORED FOR GOVERNMENTAL POSITIONS. ALSO, OMEGAS ARE ENCOURAGED TO COLLAR THEIR ALPHA MATES OR THEIR CHILDREN AND ASSUME FORMAL RESPONSIBILITY OVER THEIR ACTIONS. WE TEACH OUR YOUNG WHO THEY'RE ALLOWED TO KILL AND HOW TO BEHAVE. HOW TO CONTROL THEIR URGES. HOW TO KEEP THE BEST INTEREST OF MONSTERKIND IN MIND. FAILURE TO IMPRESS THE IMPORTANCE OF THESE MORALS INTO AN IMPRESSIONABLE, IMPULSIVE ALPHA CAN WREAK HAVOC ON AN OTHERWISE FUNCTIONAL SOCIETY."

"in other words," Daemon said, "omegas collar their alphas to prove they can control themselves and not break laws. when a collared person breaks the law, the person owning the collar is punished for not teaching right."

Berry had wanted to know what Daemon's collar meant for a long while now. To hear it was proof of Howl's taking responsibility for others, that made him feel proud. He fingered the soft bandana. 

Howl was taking responsibility for him. Howl believed in him. Berry had already promised himself to be worthy of Howl's collar, he would do what Howl needed him to do to be worthy. He wouldn't let Howl down.

'Daemon and Howl will be there keeping me safe,' he thought lovingly. His own soft, caring, nurturing omega scent joined theirs.

"that is so different..." Stretch smiled, "i'm sad to hear about the kill or be killed mindset, but for the omegas, i'm so glad your world didn't follow mine."

Berry's scent caught him off guard. Berry always tried to suppress his scent. Scared of tempting others into using him. That Berry wasn't hiding was uplifting.

Sans smiled at the sight of Berry. "I will talk with Rus and the king. Well, get this worked out." Sans got up and cracked his back. "Berry make sure ya stay with someone, don't be alone if ya can help it. I'll see ya later."

"IT WAS JUST HOW THINGS WERE. I DON'T MIND." Howl shook his head. "VERY WELL, YOU DO THAT. I WILL DO SOME DISCUSSING MYSELF. DAEMON, YOU STAY AND PROTECT."

"yes master." Daemon snuggled Berry more, taking in the scent with a smile.

Sans walked through the kitchen door and took a shortcut home.

Berry cuddled into Daemon, but looked to Howl worried. "be safe. the queen was really mad."

Stretch got up. "you'll be alright if i go rest for a bit bro?"

"DON'T WORRY, I WILL BE."

"and i'll keep berry safe," Daemon assured Stretch.

Stretch hummed. "howl, do you want to wait for vex? he could have your back while daemon is here."

"OH, I'M NOT GOING TO TALK TO YOUR QUEEN. I'M GOING TO TALK TO MY KING FIRST."

"okay." Stretch told him, "as a fell monster, i’m sure you can protect yourself, but if you want back up all you have to do is ask." He didn't have to say anything about Howl's level. He patted berry on the head.

"OKAY,” Berry said. “YOU NEED TO TAKE CARE OF THE BABY, BROTHER GO REST."

"I WILL BE FINE. DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT." Howl headed out.

Stretch nodded and kissed Berry's head then headed up the stairs. He was beat.

* * *

Sans walked out of the kitchen with a bottle of ketchup and went into his living room. Red was sitting on the couch drinking some mustard. He sat down on his datemate and kissed his cheek. "it's been a day... you should talk with vex. it's been a trying few days at his house."

Red looked up from his phone and mustard. "heya, sweetheart." He returned the kiss. "oh yeah? does this have anything to do with those assholes at the bar the other night?"

"i'm not sure, but probably." He took a swig of ketchup to help prepare himself mentally. He pulled out his phone. "i need to tell rus this too. let me get him on the phone. i really don't want to have to tell you again tonight."

"there were these three assholes who were bragging about something to do with a 'stupid skeleton'... boss got real upset when i told him and said to keep 'em there. then he came in and confronted them about something. i kicked 'em out after."

Sans nodded, "ya i think it's the same thing..." he called Rus' phone and put it on speakerphone.

The phone was answered on the second ring.  
"GOOD AFTERNOON, BROTHER!" Rus said brightly. "HOW NICE OF YOU TO CALL! I ALMOST THOUGHT YOU'D FORGOTTEN HOW."

Sans laughed, "i could never forget about that paps. it's only been 3 days. Something happened... we really need a lawyer, and i just happen to know the new best lawyer in town."

"THREE TERRIBLY LONG DAYS!" He listened to what Sans said and then gasped. "THE BEST LAWYER IN TOWN? SHUCKS, BROTHER! YOU SURE DO KNOW HOW TO SAY THINGS THAT ARE ABSOLUTELY TRUE! TELL ME EVERYTHING."

"okay, i got red here with me listening." He took another swig of ketchup. "Underswap has a pretty bad law on the books, called the sully law. it punishes omegas..." He explained it as well as he understood it. "apparently berry is listed as a sully. daemon told me the other night berry was attacked and... raped. vex and daemon confronted the monsters, drinking at a bar red works at, but the sully law protects them and blames berry. today their queen came to take berry away today. she wants berry to be retained at the sanatorium, which the other kingdoms didn't know still exists. howl claimed him and collared him, so she couldn't take him."

Red balled his good hand into a fist, dropping his phone onto his lap before he could crush the damn thing. So that's what those three fuckers had done... Rage seethed under the surface, some smoky red magic wafting from one socket. If he ever saw them at the bar again… 

Sans knew Red would be upset. He laid his hand on top of Red's fist offering support. 

Rus listened, surprisingly quiet. There was the sound of some pages hastily being flipped when Sans mentioned which law, as Rus tracked it down among his books.

"THE SULLY LAW," he said when Sans had finished. "I SEE IT HERE. THE DETAILS OF IT ARE... DISTURBING." He didn't sound cheery anymore, all business. "SO HOWL USED THE FELLSWAP COLLARING LAW..." More page flipping. "I SEE. THIS ISN'T A SIMPLE DEFENSE. I WILL HAVE TO DO SOME STUDYING TONIGHT. BUT REST ASSURED, BROTHER, NOBODY CAN PROSECUTE BERRY ON MY WATCH!"

"i would expect less from the great and wonderful papyrus. love ya bro. i'll let ya get to work."

Red let out a low breath, loosening his fist to take Sans's hand.

"THANK YOU, BROTHER! IS HE… OKAY?"

"he's got daemon, howl, and his brother taking care of him. he seems okay for the most part."

"THAT'S A RELIEF! I WILL HELP IN ANY WAY I CAN! KEEP ME UPDATED."

"will do."

HAVE A GOOD NIGHT. YOU TOO, CHERRY!"

Red flushed. He didn't understand why Papyrus had chosen to call him by such a cutesy, kid nickname, but the guy was so cheery and enthusiastic about everything that he couldn't bring himself to demand otherwise. "yeah, ok. g'night, rus."

Sans ended the phone call and took another drink of his condiment as he laid on top of Red, just enjoying his closeness. "i still got to talk to the king. howl want all the other kingdoms to back his claim and change the law."

"yeah, okay." He held Sans close, trying to calm himself back down. "fuck, poor berry... i should do something for him..."

"Yah that'd be nice." He nuzzled Red. "he seems really close to howl and daemon. when i asked what happened, berry said it was his fault for tempting his rapist... it was so fucked up. howl told him it wasn't his fault, it was their rotten choice, not his. that law is so fucked up."

"yeah? that's something. those two are weird, but they mean well..." Red settled his chin on Sans's head. "maybe he should bring pepper spray to class... or a knife."

"berry's so timid. i can't see him using it. he really seemed to believe it really was his fault too."

"hmmm..." Red thought hard, a magic hand picking up his phone again. "maybe a teleporter... yeah, like a panic button..."

sans perked up. "that's a wonderful idea."

"yeah... yeah i can do that." He started to look through his list of parts, quickly coming up with what he might need. "yeah, it shouldn't be _that_ hard. i need a magic storage system and a trigger and a case, simple enough... maybe a confirmation screen..." He started mumbling about parts.

Sans nodded. "maybe make it look like one of thems human's smartwatches? then he would use a confirmation screen."

"a smartwatch, huh, i can do that. it's small, but i think i can fit it all." He pulled his hand away from Sans to join the magic one on his phone, as he quickly searched for missing parts online. "might take... a week, maybe..."

"sounds like a plan." He got, up feeling better. "I'm going to talk to my king." He walked to the kitchen to let Red do his research and call Asgore.

Asgore picked up after a few rings, "Hello, Sans. How are you doing?"

San smiled. The king always had a way to make anyone feel relaxed. "i wish this was a happy call, fluffybuns, but we need your help and the nation's..." He went on to explain everything again.

"That is horrible. Of course I will help and I am sure Tori will too. Have Howl call with a date and time to meet his king. We may not have collaring in our culture, but we will support a monster's basic right."

"thanks asgore. I'll let howl know." Sans smiled. He ended the call and sent Howl a quick text. Then he grabbed a mustard and a new ketchup bottle and headed back to Red.

* * *

Howl glanced down at his phone, seated across from his own king. When the bloody red queen had been taken down, Gore had stepped back up from his place of exile in the ruins. They had agreed it was best, for the time being. Howl quickly read the text from Sans, then put his phone away and looked back up, lacing his fingers together. "IT APPEARS WE WILL HAVE THE SUPPORT OF THE TALE KING. I'VE NO DOUBT THAT THE FELL QUEEN WILL SUPPORT US AS WELL."

"Hmm." Gore rubbed under his chin, his fluffy goat fur greyish and slightly unkempt, but in a casual way. "You're certain you want to go through with this publicly?"

"I'M ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN, YOUR MAJESTY."

"Well, it's just... You were the one who decided to work behind the scenes. Use your day job as a front and learn everything about the other societies and pick up the experience necessary to one day take my place... Why now? It's only been a month."

"YES, I AM AWARE. I MIGHT HAVE PREFERRED TO LEAVE THIS TO SOMEONE ELSE ENTIRELY, BUT I HAVE SOMETHING I MUST PROTECT NOW."

"That something being Berry?" Gore tilted his head. There was an amused glint in his eyes. "You're not putting your love life before your career, Captain, are you?"

Howl bristled, clenching his hands together a little tighter, his blue eyes flashing. "MOST CERTAINLY NOT! IF YOU THINK THAT FOR EVEN ONE SECOND-"

Gore laughed, tilting his head back, and pulled out his baggie of weed. He hadn't bothered to kick the habit when he took the throne again. He rolled out a joint, to light with a snap of his fingers and a flicker of fire magic. "I'm teasing you, Howl. You dusted my crazy ex-wife, I'll let you do what you want."

The skeleton relaxed a little again, internally scolding himself for becoming so heated. A king Gore might be, but life in exile had changed him. Being Daemon's little drug buddy helped too, Gore regarded their relationship as less of a formal working one and more of a friendship. Unusual, but to his benefit.

"I SHOULD HOPE YOU STILL WISH FOR ME TO MAKE CORRECT CHOICES. DON'T BE TOO LENIENT."

"Well, yes. But I have faith in you. One day, you'll make a great king."

"I APPRECIATE THAT, YOUR MAJESTY. THEN, WILL TOMORROW AFTERNOON WORK TO MEET WITH THE OTHER ROYALS?"

"I have some time then, yes. I take it you'll go public immediately after a decision is made?"

"THAT IS THE PLAN."

"Then let's not waste time. Tomorrow it will be."

"THANK YOU, YOUR MAJESTY. I WILL LET THE TALES KNOW." He stood up, moving to leave the room.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay a little while and have a smoke with an old man?"

"UGH."

"Hehehe. Uptight as ever. You take good care of Berry, Captain, I think he'll be good for you."

"OF COURSE I WILL." The blessing, for whatever it might be worth, warmed his soul a little. He hid his smile as he left the room.

* * *

When Red got the information from Howl about when the meeting was, he called up his door buddy.

"Ah, good evening, Red. Will you be coming to visit sometime soon? Frisk misses you."

"hey, tori. yeah, sure, but that's not what i'm calling about. the tale and fellswap kings are meeting tomorrow at two, and i think you should be there."

"What's this about?"

"one of the swap laws. a real shitty one. this sully law." Red explained it how Berry had. Tori's voice was cold when she spoke again.

"I see. I'll definitely be there."

"glad to hear it, thanks tori. this means a lot to us."

"Of course. I can't stand by and let these injustices happen."

"yeah. we're gonna help berry as best we can from here too."

"Good. I'll be there tomorrow."

"cool. later tori." He hung up and sighed.

* * *

Berry had taken it upon himself to make dinner for everyone. Well, it was breakfast for dinner, cheesy potato & bacon scotch eggs. It was a harder recipe, but everyone was working hard to keep him and not let the queen take him back to the Sanatorium. They deserved his best. 

~~Filthy omega, still the resource-wasting space.~~

He touched his soft bandana, Howl's caring, nurturing, safe intent surrounding him. Berry gave a happy little sigh at the feeling of safety. He tried to ignore the voice, Howl's gift helping to push it to the back of his mind. 

Right now was about his family and making them a good nutritional dinner. He had to be good and worthy. 

He took the eggs out of the frying pan. He had star fruit to serve with it. He laid the fruit out from big to small on the side of the plates. It looked sooo cool! He hoped the others liked it. He came out to tell everyone, "dinners ready."

Daemon was leaning out the window, a cigarette in hand. He had been told to smoke outside, but in the interest of staying near Berry, just doing it out the window would have to do. He glanced back with a smile. "okay, berry, i'll be right there. thanks for cooking." He took another drag, then snuffed out the cigarette on his radius. It left a perfect little burn circle that he tucked back under his sleeve. The spent butt was tossed in an ashtray as he went to go sit.

Howl, who had just arrived back, pulled off his armor to be more casual. "IT'S GREATLY APPRECIATED, BERRY." He set the breastplate and set aside and went to sit.

Vex went to go get his resting mate from the bedroom.

"I THOUGHT WE COULD TRY BREAKFAST FOR DINNER." Berry smiled at everyone, his soul feeling lighter. He went and bought them all out plates and two pitchers, one milk and one orange juice. 

Vex carried Stretch back, the strong alpha that he was. He set his mate down in a chair and sat beside him. "IT LOOKS EXCELLENT."

"THAT IT DOES." Howl picked up a fork. He looked thoughtful as he took his first bite. "BERRY, MIGHT I ASK YOU SOMETHING?"

"OF COURSE." Berry smiled up at Howl. 

"I THINK IT'S BEST IF YOU'RE NOT ALONE FOR THE TIME BEING. BUT VEX HAS WORK AND STRETCH IS WITH CHILD. WHILE WE ALSO HAVE WORK, YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO COME WITH MOST OF THE TIME... NOT ONLY THAT BUT DAEMON AND I CANNOT CONTINUE TAKING UP THE SPARE ROOM AND COUCH. WOULD YOU BE OPPOSED TO MOVING IN WITH US TEMPORARILY?"

Berry thought about the offer. He did want to be here to help with the baby and his brother, but Howl was right. If the queen set someone for and he was alone and Cory was sent to take him back... or if Cory came and his pregnant brother was home... he shivered at that thought. If he stayed with Howl and Daemon it would be better for everyone. "YOU'RE RIGHT. IT SAFER THIS WAY." 

It didn't hurt that he got to spend more time with the two skeletons. He had really started to like having them so close.

“Bro you're safe at either place.” Stretch was frowning. "You don't have to leave if you don't want to.”

"I WANT TO," Berry said. 'DAEMON'S A GREAT CUDDLER,' he thought with a blush. "I WOULD COME AND VISIT HERE BROTHER, RIGHT?"

"of course you can bro. we wouldn't take your key. you can come over anytime you want."

Berry smiled.

"THAT'S FINE, OF COURSE. SO LONG AS SOMEONE IS ABLE TO ESCORT YOU AT THE TIME." Howl smiled a little as well. "WE WILL TAKE GOOD CARE OF YOU."

"yeah, and you can call every night so stretch doesn't worry," Daemon agreed. "it'll be fun!"

Berry reached over to Daemon and took his hand, and looked at both of the Fellswap skeletons. His soul felt like it was beating 'doki doki' just like in Undyne's animes that she watched with Stretch when she visited. "THANK YOU BOTH FOR TAKING CARE OF ME."

Daemon squeezed his hand gently, smiling. "of course, it's our pleasure."

"THEN WE'LL HELP YOU PACK UP WHAT YOU NEED AFTER DINNER."

Berry nodded. He let go and started eating. He was excited. He was going to be staying with them he wondered how long he would be able to stay with them.

The rest of them ate their food as well. "THIS IS VERY GOOD, BERRY. YOU GET BETTER WITH EACH MEAL," Howl said approvingly.

‘Howl liked it!’ Berry's eyelight's morphed into stars at the praise. "THANK YOU." he said excitedly, "I'M SO HAPPY YOU LIKE IT. YOU'RE ALL WORKING SO HARD." Berry wanted to say, 'FOR ME,' but he couldn't. He, a Sully, wasn't worthy of all this love and hope. Berry was happy to have it, but he still didn't feel worthy of it. They were wasting their resources in him. He needed no, wanted to do this. "I WANTED TO MAKE SOMETHING DELICIOUS AND NUTRITIOUS TO HELP KEEP YOUR STRENGTH UP. THANK YOU FOR WASTING RESOURCES. I KNOW THERE ARE BETTER THINGS YOU COULD BE USING RESOURCES ON."

Stretch dropped his fork. "Berry!" He hated when Berry would put himself down. "it's not a waste! You're not a waste!"

"THIS IS NOT WASTING RESOURCES," Howl said mildly. "I HAVE MY PRIORITIES QUITE IN ORDER. THERE IS NOTHING I WOULD RATHER PUT MY EFFORTS INTO AT THIS TIME. FOR MANY REASONS."

Berry flinched at Stretch. He hadn't meant to upset him. He never did. He loved his brother and he knew Stretch loved him. After all, if he didn’t, he wouldn’t have come and saved him from the Sanitarium. But his brother seemed to be frustrated and yelling more often than not. He looked to Howl and nodded. It filled his soul with warmth that he, or the sully law itself, was a priority.

Daemon reached over to pat Stretch's hand, hopefully to soothe him. "it's okay. we'll help him understand with time."

"YES. NOBODY EXPECTS EVERYTHING TO CHANGE OVERNIGHT."

"thanks." Stretch took a few deep breaths. "Berry, you have a therapy appointment at 9am. I got them to get you in early as an emergency appointment when i told them what happened yesterday."

"OOOH, OKAY..." Berry hadn't expected to talk again so soon. "HOWL AND DAEMON ARE COMING TOO."

"YES. NINE O CLOCK, YOU SAY? WHERE IS IT?" Howl asked.

Stretch reached into his hoodie and pulled out a business card to hand to Howl. "it seems a really nice place. sans took me there yesterday on our break. i only got a few minutes to talk to the staff, but they were nice. the online reviews were good."

He took the card and examined it, then nodded. "VERY WELL. WE WILL BE THERE RIGHT ON TIME. BERRY, DO YOU NEED ASSISTANCE PACKING?"

Berry thought a few minutes. "HMMM, HOW MANY CLOTHES DO YOU WANT ME TO BRING?" He wasn't sure how much space he would have. Was it a room or was he staying on the couch? It didn't really matter, but he hoped the floor was nice and padded like his room upstairs. The hard floor hurt his bones, but he could get used to it again if had to.

"WELL, MAYBE FIVE OR SIX PAIRS, AND WE CAN DO LAUNDRY. THAT'S NO TROUBLE. UNLESS YOU WANT TO BRING MORE?"

"NO, THAT'S FINE." Berry didn't want to be a bother. "I'LL GO PACK NOW." He got up to hurry upstairs without really eating.

Vex watched him go, then turned back to the others. "BY THE WAY, IF HE'S STAYING WITH YOU..."

"YES?" Howl turned to him.

"MAKE SURE HE EATS REGULAR MEALS. SOMETIMES HE... DOESN'T."

"HM. I SEE. I WILL KEEP AN EYE ON HIM."

Stretch got up and took Berry's plate. "he always had a problem eating, but after the sanitarium, it got really bad. i'll go wrap this up for him to take."

"I WONDER WHY... IS IT JUST BECAUSE HE THINKS IT'S A WASTE, OR SOMETHING ELSE...?"

"when we were young, our father went missing. berry was 10 and i was 7. they were going to separate us, so we ran away and he raised us. any supplies and food he found, berry would give to me. hen he was sure i was taken care of, then he would eat." Stretch sat down in Vex's lap, and Vex wrapped his arms around his pregnant mate to fondly rub the belly. "when i got him back, it was worse. like, it just doesn't' occur to him to take care of himself at all anymore." He thought about what Berry had said earlier. "like he is a waste to use resources on. it's better to give them to others."

"I SEE. SO IT IS LIKE THAT... I'LL HAVE TO COUNTER THAT SOMEHOW." Howl finished his food thoughtfully.

"mmm... maybe we just have to ask the right way..." Daemon tapped his chin.

Stretch gave Vex a hug, then got up to put the food in a to-go container.

Berry pulled out some nightclothes and six outfits. He folded them nice and tight and put them in his blue messenger bag. It was scuffed up and damaged from the attack, but he was able to clean it up. The scrapes on the leather were permanent though. He took his rough sheet from under the bed and rolled it up, placing it in with his clothes.

He went and got his hygiene stuff that he kept in a little plastic basket, then looked around. The only other stuff left was the bedding and a few more sets of clothes. He got to the bedside and opened the nightstand drawer. There was a picture of him and Stretch's friends when he came to the surface with the strange little human.

Well, he liked to think Al was a friend of his, she had let him maintain the puzzle in the forest of Snowdin to get a small wage and was teaching him to cook, badly but it had been fun. But now that she knew he was Sully and defied the Queen, he wasn't too sure anymore.

But it had him and his brother in it and it was really his only personal item besides his banana and notebook and knitting stuff. 

Berry opened the back zipper and made sure it was straight and flat while he put it in.

Berry came back downstairs with the bag on and the basket in one hand. He set his stuff by the door and he got his knitting needles and yarn from the living room table to place them in his bag. He came back to the dining room. "I'M ALL PACKED."

Howl and Daemon were done eating by then, and Howl had his knitting things collected.

"GOOD. WE'LL HEAD OUT ONCE YOU'VE SAID GOODBYE."

Stretch came up to him. "love ya bro," he said, and picked Berry up to give a big hug. "you take care. call me every day, and remember you're welcome to come home anytime." He put Berry down and held out the lunch bag that had his unfinished dinner in it.

Berry took the bag. "LOVE YOU TOO BROTHER." He gave Stretch a soft pat on the hand. "DON'T STRAIN YOURSELF. IF YOU WANT HELP, I'LL BE RIGHT OVER."

He looked to Vex and gave a smile. "THANK YOU FOR TAKING CARE OF ME AND LETTING ME COOK. YOU ARE A WONDERFUL ALPHA. "

Vex wasn't great at emotional things just yet, but he tried. He wanted to get even better. So he carefully pulled Berry into a hug. "I DIDN'T MIND, AND THANK YOU. BE SAFE AND CALL YOUR BROTHER A LOT."

Berry smiled, not expecting the hug. He patted Vex's back gently. "I WILL." 

He pulled away after a few moments and gathered his knitting, bags, and his notebook for cooking. He hesitated a moment, looking at the two monsters. They were so kind and did so much for him. Berry's soul felt warm. Loved. Safe. 

The feelings both excited and scared him.

~~Dirty Sully. Think of tempting monsters. Inflicting yourself on them.~~

He closed his sockets and tried to push the fear and voice to the back of his mind. He wasn't being bad. They wanted to take him in. They wanted him. He wasn't inflicting himself on them. The two skeletons were not scared of what ugly, dirty truths came with him.

Berry laced his fingers with Daemon's and smiled up at Howl and Daemon. "THANK YOU FOR TAKING CARE OF ME."

Howl nodded to him, a small smile on his face. "IT IS OUR PLEASURE." He took Daemon's other hand. Daemon held onto both of them, and with a brief dip into the void, they arrived in a different house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone is working hard!


	8. Heart's Been Cut Wide Open, Changing and I Know It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a talking licorice stick gives advice and a spider grills a donut

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all,  
> Thanks for coming and giving our story a read. Leave a comment and let use know what you think and predictions. We love hearing from you!
> 
> GetMcDunkedOn: btw y'all I just redid ALL of the tagging. All of it ||OTL so check those if you think you gotta!

The house of the Fellswap skeletons was a bit more sleek and fancy than the swap house. More expensive, but not that much bigger. The guest bedroom was on the ground floor, and there were two other bedrooms on the second floor. Two bathrooms, a spacious living room, an office, and a very nice kitchen. Mahogany furniture, a black couch, richly colored walls. Howl let go of his brother and set down his knitting things. “LET’S PUT YOUR LEFTOVERS IN THE FRIDGE.”

Berry looked around at the beautiful place. It was a little overwhelming. What if he got it dirty with his filth? He gave a squeeze to Daemon’s hand before letting go. Then he followed Howl into the kitchen. “WOWWEE,” he said, filled with awe. Their kitchen was just as nice as the living room.

“YES, OUR HOUSE IS VERY NICE. THE GUEST ROOM IS DOWN HERE. THAT’S WHERE YOU’LL BE STAYING UNLESS YOU WANT TO SHARE DAEMON’S ROOM.”

Berry beamed at that. A room or he could share? He looked at Daemon. It was nice having Howl in his room while he slept, but he didn’t want to upset Daemon. The tall skeleton would be concerned when Berry wouldn’t want to sleep in the bed... “I’LL SLEEP IN THE GUEST ROOM,” he breathed.

Daemon smiled at him, pulling out a cigarette absently. He lit it with a snap of his fingers instead of a lighter, then opened the window to lean on the sill. “alright, if that’s what you want. but call out in the night and we’ll come running, okay?”

Berry smiled brightly. “ALRIGHT.”

“YES.” Howl put away the leftovers. “I WON’T FORCE YOU TO USE THE BED... BUT MAYBE YOU COULD AT LEAST SIT ON IT NOW AND THEN.”

Berry looked sheepish. ‘COULD HOWL READ MINDS?’ he thought while saying, “I’LL TRY.”

“THAT’S ALL I’M ASKING FOR, BERRY. JUST TRYING.” Howl closed the fridge and looked over. “NOW THEN, WOULD YOU WANT A FULL TOUR OR DO YOU JUST WANT TO GO AHEAD AND SLEEP?”

Berry smiled cheerfully at being given a choice. It was making him feel empowered, like him and his choices mattered. “I WOULD LOVE A TOUR, PLEASE.”

“VERY WELL. I WILL SHOW YOU AROUND.”

“i’ll come along when i’m done,” Daemon said, flicking the used up part of the cherry out the window.

“GOOD.” Howl led Berry off to the office, where he had a computer and a nice desk and plenty of papers. He even had carved figurines of all the members of the guard scattered across a map. “THIS IS WHERE I WORK.”

Berry went up and knelt down examining the figures, but didn’t touch them, he was too afraid of breaking them. “WOWIE THESE ARE VERY DETAILED DID YOU MAKE THEM?"

“HMM?” He glanced at the models. “AH, NO. NOT MYSELF, I DON’T HAVE THAT SKILL. BUT I PAID QUITE WELL TO HAVE THEM MADE SO DETAILED.”

Berry nodded. They were still cool.

“THEY HELP ME STRATEGIZE.” He went over to them and picked up the Daemon figure. It was striking, down to the fond smile and gentle gaze. He placed it at the area of the map with his house and shifted a few more.

Berry's eyelights fell to the map. He cocked his head to the side and asked, “WHAT IS THERE TO STRATEGIZE, AND WHY DO YOU HAVE A MAP OF TOWN?”

“AH, WELL, IT’S A LONG STORY. PERHAPS IT’S MORE OUT OF HABIT THAN REAL NEED. AFTER ALL, OUR BATTLES ARE ALL POLITICAL NOW, NOT PHYSICAL. I THINK IT’S IMPORTANT TO KNOW WHERE THERE MIGHT BE TROUBLE AND WHERE WE HAVE GOOD CONNECTIONS. IN THIS CASE, IT’S ABOUT STRATEGIZING WHERE WE MIGHT NEED TO REINFORCE PUBLIC IMAGE OR HELP THOSE STRUGGLING WITH HOUSING AND THE LIKE.”

Berry nodded. He looked at all the monsters. It was exciting to see all the skeletons. One was even him! He was important. His fingers itched to pick them up. To touch and scrutinize the details of him and his family, but he refrained. It wouldn’t do if they got broken or dirty. He gripped onto his bandana instead. The feelings woven made his smile brighten more.

“YOU’RE VERY ORGANIZED AND CARING.” He blushed as he said that. “YOU ARE DOING YOUR BEST TO MAKE SURE MONSTERKIND FLOURISHES.”  
“THAT I AM. I HAVE AN ADVANTAGE IN BEING AN OMEGA THAT WAY.” Howl looked to Berry’s too, then carefully put it in his house as well. “THAT IS MY GOAL, YES. WHY ELSE WOULD I WANT TO BE KING? IT WAS NEVER FOR MYSELF. I CAN FLOURISH JUST FINE ON MY OWN. IF I CHOSE TO, I COULD ONLY FOCUS ON MYSELF. THEN I WOULD NOT HAVE ANY WORRIES. BUT THAT CHOICE IS NOT ONE I CAN ALLOW MYSELF TO MAKE. PEOPLE NEED A STRONG LEADER TO SUPPORT THEM.”

Berry thought about what Howl said. “OMEGAS CAN BE A GOOD THING...” he couldn’t believe it. Ever since his first heat, when he found out he was an omega, it had been a night terror added to the nightmare that had been his childhood.

Berry had done everything in his limited power to keep his family together. Even after their father disappeared, he tried so hard. Being an omega had ripped the last of their family apart. It led him to the Sanitarium. He had learned to hate being an omega and in turn to hate himself. Omegas were useless, unwanted…

~~filthy, disgusting, sully.~~

“I THOUGHT NOTHING COULD EVER COME OUT OF BEING ONE...” he whispered to himself.

“YES, OF COURSE IT CAN. IT’S ALWAYS BEEN SO.” Howl fixed a few more positions, before he led the way back out of the office. Daemon met them just outside the door, tucking his sleeve down.

“hiya.”

Berry followed out Howl. His mind is still trying to compute. Daemon gave him a little start as he wasn’t paying attention, and he gave a little wave. “HELLO.”

Daemon finished covering his forearms with his sleeves. Howl frowned at him, but didn’t comment. “THE DOWNSTAIRS BATHROOM IS OVER HERE.” It was spotless, and the shower-bath combo looked luxurious. “TOWELS ARE UNDER THE SINK.”

“DO YOU WANT ME TO KEEP MY HYGIENE STUFF IN HERE OR IN THE ROOM?” Berry asked. He didn’t want to put out his stuff if Howl didn’t want it.

“WHICHEVER YOU’D PREFER IS FINE. WE HAVE OUR OWN BATHROOM UPSTAIRS, SO AS LONG AS YOU CLEAN UP ANY MESSES, YOU CAN KEEP YOUR THINGS WHERE YOU PLEASE.”

“THANK YOU.” The shorter skeleton opened the cabinet under the sink and placed his basket in there, to keep it out of sight.

“YOU’RE QUITE WELCOME. THE GUEST BEDROOM IS HERE.” He showed that off next. The room was nice and comfortable, but unlike the rest of the house it wasn’t decorated. It was a blank canvas, ready to be personalized by their new occupant.

Berry looked around. It wasn’t too different from his bedroom. He went up to the bed, it was soft, and the comforter looked plush. He couldn’t help being bad and reached out and lightly ran his phalanges over it, before he realized it and flinched, pulling his hand away. His bones ached from the old lessons that it was bad to nest.

He grabbed his bandana. Feeling the safety, warmth, caring comfort it offered, it was full of Howl’s magic and soft scent. Helping to ground him and relax. It helped push the thoughts away.

“IT’S OKAY TO TOUCH IT,” Howl said when Berry flinched away from the bed. “YOU DON’T HAVE TO SLEEP IN IT. I WON’T MAKE YOU. BUT IT’S OKAY TO TOUCH IT OR SIT ON IT.” He went over to it and sat himself, as if to assure Berry.

Berry watched Howl sit down. ‘HOWL WAS HERE. HOWL WOULD KEEP ME SAFE,’ he reminded himself. Once felt grounded again, he placed his bag on the nightstand for now. He looked at the carpet and wiggled his toes. It was very soft and plush “THIS IS A NICE ROOM THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME USE IT.”

“I’M GLAD YOU LIKE IT. IF YOU NEED ANY OTHER ACCOMMODATIONS, PLEASE LET ME KNOW.”

“i’ll getcha anything we don’t have from the store,” Daemon agreed.

Berry watched Howl perch on the bed serenely. He wasn’t scared of it. Berry shouldn’t be either. He rubbed the material of the bandana between his fingers. “THIS IS MORE THAN I NEED.” He felt he was talking too much and not returning anything. He asked,

“BUT ARE THERE ANY CHORES THAT I CAN HELP WITH? IT’S ONLY FAIR THAT I HELP WITH THEM.”

“CHORES? DAEMON LARGELY DOES THOSE.”

“mhm. umm...” Daemon thought about it. “you can take care of the kitchen, if you want. i like doing the dusting and the floors and stuff.”

Berry nodded eagerly. Useful was good. Being useful for _Howl and Daemon_ was even better. “ALRIGHT.” He reached out to hug the tall skeleton, but stopped mid-motion. In his excitement he almost forgot himself, but Daemon once said he could hug him anytime, so he didn’t pull back yet. He stood inches from the hug. “MAY I HUG YOU?”

Daemon beamed and hugged Berry nice and tight. “you can always hug me! unless i’m in a fight, then you might get hurt.” Snuggle snuggle.

“THANK YOU DAEMON.” Berry purred at the reinforcement. “YOU’RE WONDERFUL.” He looked at Howl. “YOU’RE BOTH WONDERFUL.” He squeezed Daemon. ‘MORE THAN I DESERVE,’ he thought.

“aw, thank you. you’re wonderful too.”

“HE IS CORRECT. WE’RE VERY GLAD TO HAVE YOU. ARE YOU READY FOR YOUR THERAPY APPOINTMENT IN THE MORNING?”

“I THINK SO…” Berry held on to Daemon as he talked. “STRETCH DIDNT SAY TO BRING ANYTHING.... I JUST HAVE TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS THEY ASK RIGHT?”

“SORT OF. YOU DON’T HAVE TO ANSWER ANYTHING YOU REALLY DON’T WANT TO, AND SOMETIMES IT’S LESS ANSWERING QUESTIONS AND MORE TALKING ABOUT HOW YOU FEEL. YOU DON’T HAVE TO TALK ABOUT THINGS IF YOU DON’T WANT TO, BUT YOU MUSTN’T LIE.”

Berry thought about it while being held in the warm safety of Daemon’s embrace. It was painful to look back on the past, yet he had pledged. “I PROMISED TO DO MY BEST. I WOULDN’T LIE.”

Daemon nuzzled him tenderly. “good. we’re so super proud.”

Berry’s purr got louder, and that made magic creeped up his face as he blushed.

The alpha giggled softly. “i give the best hugs, huh?”

“YOU SURE DO,” Berry said timidly. He was feeling spoiled and gave a final squeeze. Then he let go.

“hehe, thank you~” He squeezed back gently, then stepped back.

“WELL, WITH THAT ALL OUT OF THE WAY, WOULD YOU LIKE TO TURN IN FOR THE NIGHT, BERRY?” Howl asked, getting back up.

“YES. I’LL TAKE A SHOWER THEN. BOTH OF YOU HAVE A GOOD NIGHT. SLEEP TIGHT.”

“YOU AS WELL.” Howl dipped his head. The two of them headed out to give Berry privacy.

Berry took a few minutes to unpack and think about all that had happened. It had been a very imposing day, and now he was living with Daemon and Howl.

Berry feared tempting them. After all, he was tempting himself with being here. The hurt skeleton wanted more; he wanted what his brother had with Vex, and he felt connected with Daemon and Howl. “I CAN’T HAVE THAT,” he whispered sadly and rubbed at his collarbone. “THIS IS MORE THAN SOMEONE LIKE ME SHOULD HAVE.”

~~Filthy, disgusting, whore. Inflicting yourself on good monsters.~~

That made the small skeleton think about his talk with Howl. “I TOLD HIM THINGS. MANY THINGS I HAVE NEVER EVEN TOLD MY BROTHER.” They were deep dark secrets, he didn’t even like to admit to himself, yet in that moment they came spilling out. “AND HOWL SAID I WASN'T BAD.” The small monster wiped at his sockets. ‘THEY ARE SO AMAZING,’ he told himself.

Good fortune had never been on his side. A dark feeling of foreboding bit into his bones like Cory had. “I... I DON’T WANT TO LOSE THIS,” he mumbled. He was sure that his small prayer wouldn’t get an answer. All this would hurt badly when he loses it.  
Howl’s scent brought him out of the dark thoughts. He was going to trust in Howl and Daemon. Berry couldn’t let the voice and memories win. He headed to the shower.

* * *

The next morning, there was pleasant-smelling breakfast that greeted Berry. It drew him from under the bed as his non-existent stomach growled in hunger. He got dressed hurriedly and went exploring. He found Howl had made breakfast burritos, fancy gourmet kinds.

Berry walked into the kitchen. “mmmmm, that smells wonderful and good morning.“ He sat at the table.

“GOOD MORNING.” Howl gave him his plate and a glass of milk. “READY FOR YOUR THERAPIST APPOINTMENT?”

Berry played with his bandana a bit. “YES.” He was nervous, but he had to be strong and do this, he’d promised.

“GOOD. PLEASE EAT, BERRY.” He sat with his own. Daemon was already digging in, making a pleased noise. His burrito had barbecue sauce inside.

Berry looked at the burrito. It looked yummy, but he had butterflies in his non-existent tummy from the question. He picked it up and took a bite. It was fantastic. His belly settled as he ate. He hadn’t noticed how hungry he was, after all he missed dinner the night before.

Howl watched him for a few moments, then dug into his own food, pleased. Breakfast was a pleasant affair, and after he cleaned up, Daemon leaned down to let Howl clip his leash onto the collar he wore proudly around his neck. Howl looped his hand through the handle, gripping it loosely, and tugged his gloves a little tighter. It was braided leather, well-lacquered, two different shades, blue and orange.

Berry watched curiously. “WHY DO YOU PUT A LEASH ON DAEMON?” he asked.

“IT EMPHASIZES THE COLLAR,” Howl answered, brushing the handle. “NOBODY CAN MISS IT LIKE THIS. THE QUALITY IS A SMALL EXTRA STATUS SYMBOL. ASIDE FROM THAT, HE CAN SHORTCUT BOTH OF US WITHOUT PHYSICAL CONTACT.”

“OHHH.”

“ARE YOU READY TO GO, THEN?”

Berry took a deep, calming breath. He was uneasy about this. He turned to Daemon. “MAY I HAVE A HUG BEFORE WE GO?”

“of course!” Daemon leaned down to hug him nice and tight. “i’m so proud of you.”

Berry blushed at the praise. “THANKS. THE UNKNOWN IS SCARY.” He relaxed into the hug. “BUT KNOWING HOWL IS COMING AND YOU’LL BE NEAR MAKES IT BEARABLE. “

“mhm, the unknown is the scariest. but soon it won’t be unknown anymore!” He beamed. “ready to go?”

Berry took a last squeeze then let go to hold Daemon’s hand, gathering his courage. “I’M READY.”

“okay~” He ported them all to just outside an office and led them in. The receptionist gave Berry a diagnostic test to fill out about depression, anxiety, and PTSD symptoms.

Berry looked at the questions. They seemed strange to him, asking if he agreed with the statements or not. Some asked if the statements were true or not. Others asked if the statement happened to him a lot, sometimes or never. He tried to answer as truthfully as possible.  
When he was finished with the paper, the receptionist took it back and input all of his information. Daemon held his hand. After a few minutes of waiting, the receptionist ushered them back to the correct office. A licorice-looking monster woman sat at a desk. There was a sofa across from her, another comfy chair next to that, and an assortment of zen decorations around the room.

“Good morning. My name is Candy and I’ll be working with you starting today. It’s nice to meet you all.”

Berry looked around the room curiously. The small monster breathed a sigh of relief when he didn’t see any medical stuff, but he still kept one hand clutching his bandana and the other tight in Daemon’s grip. After all, a therapist was a mind _doctor_.

When the monster introduced herself he replied politely, “HELLO, I'M BERRY.”

“Very nice to meet you, Berry. And you two?”

“I AM HOWL.” He dipped his head. “THIS IS MY BROTHER DAEMON. WE ARE HERE TO SUPPORT BERRY. AND I MAY ALSO TALK.”

“I see. You’re all welcome. Please sit wherever is comfortable.”

Howl claimed the easy chair, leaving Daemon and Berry on the couch.

Berry sat next to Daemon, still holding his hand. “SO... HOW DO WE DO THIS? DO YOU ASK QUESTIONS OR AM I TO JUST TELL YOU ABOUT BEING BAD AND THE CORRECTIONS?”

“YOU WEREN’T BAD,” Howl said firmly. Candy looked down at her notebook. Berry looked away.

“I have written here that the major purpose of this therapy is to help with recovery from sexual assault. While it is important we talk about what happened, perhaps it might be better to start more generally. What would you like to tell me about yourself that doesn’t involve this trauma?”

“I...” Berry tried to think of something, “I’M LEARNING TO COOK AND KNIT... I WAS TAKING COOKING CLASSES. I’M GOOD AT CLEANING...”

“That’s very good.” She nodded and wrote that down. “I understand it was your brother that set this up. Do you have any other family?”

The short skeleton rubbed his fingers over the bandana and smiled up at her. “IT WAS JUST MY BROTHER UNDERGROUND, BUT NOW I HAVE A BIG FAMILY.” He smiled and was relaxing. “HOWL, DAEMON.” he squeezed Daemon’s hand. “VEX, RED AND SANS. THEY’RE ALL MY FAMILY NOW.”

“I see. I’m glad you have so many people supporting you now. But you grew up without parents or guardians of any kind?”

“WE HAD A FATHER.” Berry’s happiness fell. “HE DISAPPEARED WHEN I WAS 12. STRETCH WAS 8. WE WERE GOING TO BE SEPARATED AND SENT TO DIFFERENT FOSTER HOMES. I DIDN'T WANT TO LOSE MY BROTHER TOO, SO WE RAN AWAY. WE STAYED IN OLD BUILDINGS OR IN CAVES NOT TOO FAR FROM THE CITY, UNTIL THEY CAUGHT ME TEMPTING DURING MY FIRST HEAT AND TOOK ME TO THE SANITARIUM.”

“I see, I’m sorry to hear that.” She wrote more notes. “Tell me about that. You said during your first heat? Were you still in stripes? Were you aware of what was happening?”

“I WAS STILL IN STRIPES, JUST FOR A FEW MORE WEEKS.” Berry let go of Daemon and slid off the couch and pulled his knees up to make his body as small as he could. Daemon made a mild noise of distress, but didn’t stop him. “AT FIRST, NO. I THOUGHT I WAS GETTING SICK.” He plucked at a loose string. “WE WERE STAYING IN A BROKEN DOWN BUILDING ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF NEW HOME. FOOD HAD BEEN SCARCE AND STRETCH WAS HUNGRY. HE WANTED TO GO DUMPSTER DIVING. I DIDN’T WANT HIM OUT ALONE AT NIGHT, SO I WENT OUT. IT WAS JUST A LITTLE SICKNESS: JUST FEELING HOT AND FIDGETY.”

“I see. So you did not understand.” She wrote that down too. “I can see you’re distressed. I would like to ask you what happened during the first assault, but if you’re uncomfortable sharing that so soon, I understand.”

Berry shook his head, “THERE’S NOT MUCH AFTER THAT. I WENT OUT, THE SCENT KICKED IN. THE OMEGA IN ME TEMPTED A MONSTER. THE GUARDS HEARD ME YELL FOR HELP. THAT WAS A MISTAKE.” He gripped the string and pulled it. “YOU SHOULD ALWAYS TAKE A PUNISHMENT QUIETLY. THEY TOOK ME AWAY AFTER THEY PUNISHED ME TOO.”

“Hmm.” She frowned a little. “I would like to have something clarified, if it’s alright. So your heat scent began and someone approached you? Did they say anything, or just immediately start assaulting you?”

“THEY CAME UP BEHIND ME. THEY ASKED WHY I WAS DIGGING IN THE TRASH. WHEN THEY GOT CLOSER, I THINK THEY SMELLED ME THEN. THEY SAID SOMETHING ABOUT ME SMELLING GOOD EVEN WITH THE GARBAGE TRYING TO HIDE IT.” He shivered, memories of his first assault overlapping with the newest. “THAT GOOD OMEGAS DON’T GO OUT DURING HEAT. I WAS BAD AND WAS TEMPTING THEM.”

“I see, and then they hurt you. You called for help, and the guards arrested you. I see.” She wrote that down. “Did you feel you were to blame as it was happening? Or were you angry?”

“I WAS SCARED.... HURT... I WAS ANGRY WHEN THE GUARDS DIDN’T STOP IT, BUT THEY MADE SURE TO LET ME KNOW WHAT I DID WRONG. I TOLD THEM I WOULD BE GOOD. I WOULD GO HOME AND NOT COME BACK OUT, BUT IT WAS TOO LATE.” He squeezed and twisted his fingers hard. “ONCE A SULLY, ALWAYS A SULLY.”

“I see.” More writing. “And are you aware that none of the other monster cultures even have such a thing as ‘Sully’?”

Berry nodded haltingly. “HOWL TOLD ME YESTERDAY.” He said the next part with a little awe in his voice. “HE SAID IN HIS CULTURE THAT OMEGAS ARE WANTED AND PROTECTED.”

“Yes, that is correct. Even in the other two known monster cultures, omegas are not blamed for their heat scents. Even humans, who don’t have heats or good smelling capabilities, recognize that sexual assault is wrong. What those monsters did to you would be illegal in any other culture. How does this information make you feel?”

“CONFUSED...” He scooted closer to Daemon’s legs and leaned against them, looking for a grounding presence.

Daemon leaned down and gently patted his head. “you can sit with me again if you want,” he whispered. Berry took the offer and climbed back up to snuggle into Daemon’s side. “there you go.” The taller skeleton looked relieved.

“It’s understandable to be confused.” Candy nodded. “They taught you one thing, but now outside of your culture, that teaching is completely wrong. It can be difficult to change your thinking quickly. But which set of beliefs do you like more?”

“I LIKE THEIRS. I TRY SO HARD NOT TO BE BAD, BUT I CANNOT BE GOOD IN MY CULTURE.” Tears were pooling in his sockets. “I DON'T WANT TO GO BACK TO THE SANITARIUM WHERE I’M ALWAYS BAD. A DUMB SULLY WHO NEVER LEARNS FROM THE CORRECTIONS. DESERVING OF PUNISHMENT.” Tears started to fall. “ONLY GOOD TO BE USED AS AN EXPERIMENT.” He hid his face in Daemon’s side and sounded muffled when he said, “HOWL SAID I'M NOT BAD. I WANT TO BELIEVE IT, BUT IT’S HARD. I WANT TO BELIEVE IN HIM.”

Howl was staying quiet, watching. He looked proud, though. Daemon hugged Berry lightly, rubbing his back. “you’re doing so good.”

Berry was glad to hear that from Daemon. It calmed him down a lot. When he looked over at Howl and saw he was proud, Berry wiped at his sockets.

“I’m glad to hear that. It is very hard, but you want it, so that’s a good first step.” Candy closed her notebook and opened a drawer, then pulled out another notebook. “This is an empty journal. I’d like you to write in it every day. It doesn’t matter what you write, so long as it’s something each day. You don’t have to show it to anyone, even me, so there is no need to hide details or lie inside. Can you do that for me, Berry?”

He looked at Candy as she held out the notebook. “OKAY.”

“Thank you.” She handed it over. “One other thing I would like you to do, every day. I would like for you to tell yourself that you are not bad or sully. That sully doesn’t exist, and it wasn’t your fault. It’s okay that you don’t believe it right now, but please say it every day, anyway. In time, the words will feel more like the truth.”

He took the notebook and nodded. “I’LL TRY.”

“Good, that’s all I can ask of you.” She folded her hands. “Is there anything else you would like to talk about before we end for today?”

“WERE MEETING AGAIN? TO TALK MORE?” No one had said that he was coming here more than once. “WHEN?”

“Well, yes.” She tilted her head. “Therapy is typically long term. Getting better is a process. It cannot be done all at once. Typically, my clients come once a week. We can do more or less depending on what is comfortable for you.”

“OH.” He guessed that made sense. “I DON’T THINK I HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO TALK ABOUT NOW. THANK YOU YOUR HELP.”

“Very well, then we will conclude this session here. You’re very welcome. Please try to write every day and say your affirmations.” She smiled and nodded at him.

Berry hugged the notebook and stood up with Daemon holding his hand. He looked to Howl.

Daemon smiled at him and got up too. Howl stood from his own seat. “THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MADAM. WE’LL BE ON OUR WAY.” He led the way back outside. “YOU DID VERY GOOD, BERRY,” he said when they were alone.

Berry preened at the praise. It had taken a lot of courage. “THANK YOU.”

“YOU ARE QUITE WELCOME.” He nodded. “IS THERE ANYTHING YOU’D LIKE TO DO BEFORE WE GO HOME? PERHAPS WE COULD STOP SOMEWHERE AND BUY SOMETHING SWEET AS A CELEBRATION.”

Berry nodded earnestly. The morning had been very stressful. “REALLY?” Maybe something sweet was just what he needed to help with the stress. “COULD WE GET A MILKSHAKE?”

“A MILKSHAKE IS ACCEPTABLE. PUPPY.” He tugged at Daemon’s leash. “DO YOU KNOW WHERE TO FIND A MILKSHAKE PLACE?”

“sure do, master.” He nodded and took Berry’s hand to shortcut them there.

Berry looked around. It looked like Muffet’s, but not the one from his underground. He followed the two inside. “WHAT ARE YOU TWO GETTING?”

“I WILL ALSO GET A MILKSHAKE,” Howl decided. “A SIMPLE STRAWBERRY WILL DO.”

“mmm...” Daemon rubbed under his chin. Then he beamed. “barbecue donut.”

Howl sighed through his nasal cavity.

Berry wasn’t sure what that would taste like. Maybe they made sweet barbecue for it? “ARE WE ORDERING IN OR TAKE OUT?” Berry asked, not sure if either monster had plans today.

“WHICHEVER YOU’D LIKE, BERRY,” Howl assured.

“it’s a while still before i have to take master to the meeting,” Daemon agreed. “then it’ll just be us two for a bit.”

Berry nodded. So Howl had plans today, at least they had spent this time together. The Underswap monster looked into the window. There weren't many people here. “LET'S EAT HERE.” Berry laced his fingers into Daemon’s and mumbled, “IT WOULD BE OKAY TO SPEND TIME OUTSIDE.” He rubbed his soft bandana. It helped his courage. It wasn’t his first correction, and the therapist had said it wasn’t his fault.

~~Dirty Sully should know better than to...~~

He squeezed Daemon’s hand harder, he told the voice, "I HAVE MY FAMILY WITH ME. THEY’LL KEEP ME SAFE." The small monster hadn’t realized he said that out loud.

“of course it’s okay,” Daemon assured, squeezing Berry’s hand gently.

Howl nodded. “WE WILL PROTECT YOU, OF COURSE. NOTHING WILL HARM YOU. LET’S GO IN.” He led the way inside.

Berry followed in. He sat closest to the wall on the side next to Daemon in the booth, Howl across from them. He cuddled into Daemon's side a little, nervous.

Daemon put an arm around him, comforting and protective.

The spider lady that came to take their order looked a lot like the Muffet from Berry’s verse, but with sharper fangs and claws and red-coded clothes. Nonetheless, she seemed friendly enough, smiling at them all.

“Good to see you two! And who’s this cutie getting all cozy with my favorite customer~?”

Berry blushed. “HI,” he said hesitantly. “MY NAME IS BERRY. IT'S NICE TO MEET YOU.”

“Nice to meet you too, sweetie. I’m Spindle.”

“berry’s our new good friend,” Daemon said cheerfully. “my usual, please?”

“Of course. What would the sweet Berry like?”

Berry smiled at being called a good friend. “MAY I HAVE AN OREO MILKSHAKE WITH WHIPPED CREAM?”

“Of course, sweetie. And you, Howl?”

“STRAWBERRY MILKSHAKE, PLEASE.”

“Coming right up.” She wrote it all down and headed off..

“SHE SEEMS REALLY NICE.” Berry said from the safety of Daemon's side.

“yeah, she’s really nice,” Daemon agreed.

Spiders were the ones to deliver the drinks and the donut. Said donut did look grilled and with warm barbecue sauce on it. Berry watched excitedly. He said, “THEY’RE SO COOL,” as they descended the webs. It had been a long time since he had been at a Muffet’s. His own spider mistress was nice and all, but being around all the Underswap monsters had Berry too nervous to relax when he went without his brother. It would only take one that knew his past or saw his collar to tell the town. Here, he didn’t see anyone from his world. His blue gaze fell to Howl and Daemon. They protected him. As the drinks were sat down, he called out, “THANK YOU!” Berry looked closely at Daemon’s donut and laughed. “HOW DID SHE GRILL IT?”

They both thanked the spiders as well. Daemon giggled and took a bite. “on a mini grill like anything else?”

“HE’S BEEN GETTING THAT ABOMINATION AS HIS FAVORITE SNACK FOR YEARS.” Howl sipped his shake.

‘MAYBE,’ Berry thought, ‘I COULD LEARN TO MAKE ONE FOR HIM?’ He decided he would try it one day, as he took a sip of the shake.

“WOWWER! THIS IS YUMMY.” Berry sat up so Daemon could enjoy his food. “THANK YOU FOR TAKING ME HERE.”

“glad you like it, berry.” Daemon squeezed him gently, then kept enjoying his donut.

“YES, FOR ALL THAT SUGARY FOODS NEED MODERATION, I HAVE TO ADMIT THAT SPINDLE IS VERY GOOD AT WHAT SHE DOES.”

Berry smiled as Daemon squeezed him, making his face flush with magic. He was thrilled at that moment. He could live the lie of being a normal monster for a little bit.

They all enjoyed their treats, and when they were done, Howl paid. Then they went back outside to find a quiet area where Daemon could port them home.

“i have to take howl to the meeting soon, okay? but i won’t be gone more than five minutes.”

“OKAY.” Berry squeezed his fingers a bit. It was just a few minutes. “I’LL GO WRITE IN MY JOURNAL AS I WAIT,” he offered.

“that’s a good idea, yeah!”

“GOOD, YES. I’M VERY PROUD OF YOU.” Howl nodded approvingly.

Berry lifted his head a bit and stood straighter. It felt really nice to have people be proud of him. “BEST OF LUCK AT YOUR MEETING.” He gave Daemon a hug. “AND I’LL SEE YOU SOON, DAEMON.” He pulled the journal up and hugged it as he stepped away for them.

“THANK YOU, BERRY, I APPRECIATE IT.” Howl nodded, tugging the leash gently. Daemon ported them both away.

Berry stood there for a few seconds, looking at the space that was now empty.

~~Sully don’t deserve nice things.~~

“QUIET...” He’d never said that to the voice before. He believed what it said about him deep down. No matter how much he didn’t want it to be true. He heard it almost all the time, it was hard to believe anything else with its constant reminder of what he was. He tried to do what Ms. Candy had told him. “I AM G-G-GOOD.” He crushed the notebook a bit. “S-S-SULLY DOESN’T EXIST...”

~~SULLY! DIRTY WHORE! NEED TO LEARN YOUR PLACE!~~

The small skeleton took a step back. The strong criticism made him hunch back up. He lost that little courage he had been finding. He needed to stop tempting fate. Taking silent steps, he headed to his room.


	9. No Matter What they Try to Say, You were Always There for Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Howl and family talk to the nobles, and Berry makes a realization.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I so happy your here reading! Be sure to subscribe to get updates of when we post. Also let us know that you like our work by leaving a kudo and a comment! We love replying and talking to you all!

Howl let go of his brother and examined himself in the window. “HOW DO I LOOK? SUITABLE FOR MY FIRST AUDIENCE WITH THE OTHER RULERS?”

“you look great, master.” Daemon smiled. “i’m sure you’ll do great.”

“WELL, OF COURSE I WILL. I’M MORE CONCERNED ABOUT THE OTHERS.”

“it’ll go great, master! let’s go in?”

“HMM.” He straightened out his clothes and tightened his gloves, then nodded at his reflection. “YES, VERY WELL. LET'S GO.” He led the way inside and to the correct meeting room.

The embassy was a busy place. Monsters and Humans coming and going. None really paid attention to the two skeleton monsters as they made their way to the back. Standing at the doors to the room was Sans, Papyrus and Undyne, who currently had the tall skeleton in a headlock giving him a noogie.

They heard her saying, “I’m proud of you! Ya, bonehead.”

“PLEASE DON’T NOOGIE THE SKELETON!” Papyrus protested. “BUT I AM GLAD YOU ARE PROUD OF ME, UNDYNE!”

“GREETINGS.” Howl nodded to them. “I PRESUME THE ROYALS ARE ALREADY INSIDE?”

“Yeah.” She let go of Papyrus. “They are waiting on all of you and don’t worry, I will guard the door myself and my Al has swept for bugs.” She threw open the door. “Now get your secret meeting on.”

“thanks dyne,” Sans said.

“IT IS APPRECIATED.” He nodded to her and strode in, all confidence. Gore perked up from where he’d been cowering on the opposite end of the table from Tori. Tori was ignoring him and the tale Asgore, talking quietly to Red beside her. Vex was frowning at a few documents in front of him.

“good to see ya two,” Sans told Daemon and Howl as he entered behind paps. Sans came in and smelled at Red. "hey, ya hot stuff.” He winked at his boyfriend.

"hey, sweetheart.” Red waved at his boyfriend with a goofy grin, facing forward again.

Then Sans sat by Asgore and told him, “good to see ya. i just wish it was under different circumstances.” Asgore nodded askSans.

“Agreed.” He looked at the two new skeletons. “You are Howl, correct?”

Vex looked up from the documents. “HELLO.”

“YES, THAT IS CORRECT,” Howl said, putting a hand to his chest. “I AM THE MAGNANIMOUS HOWL. I DON’T KNOW WHAT GORE MIGHT HAVE TOLD YOU, BUT I AM INVESTED IN THE ONGOING POLITICS OF THE DIFFERENT MONSTER CULTURES AND OUR INTERACTION WITH HUMANKIND. THE MATTER WE ARE ADDRESSING TODAY IS VERY GRIM, BUT OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE. FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR KIND, A CHANGE NEEDS TO BE MADE.”

Gore nodded a little and kept trying to not look at Tori.

Sans looked grim and nodded.

Asgore asked, “I was unaware Fellswap had a judge?”

Howl shook his head. “THERE IS NO SUCH POSITION. I WAS THE CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD, AND I PLAYED A PART IN GETTING GORE BACK ON THE THRONE. MY POLITICAL INTEREST HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH JUDGING.” He took a seat. Daemon followed suit, and Papyrus did as well, law book in hand.

Asgore accepted Howl’s answer and then smiled at Papyrus. “It's good to see you too, Papyrus, and Congratulations.” He turned to the other nobles. “For those of you that don’t know. Papyrus, Sans’s brother, has just passed the human bar test and is now the first monster lawyer to practice human law. He will be a brilliant assistant to all monster kinds.”

“my bro is the coolest.” Sans added with a dopey grin.

“Oh, congratulations,” Gore muttered.

Tori smiled. “Yes, well done.”

“THANK YOU.” Papyrus beamed. “I’VE BEEN RESEARCHING THE SULLY AND COLLARING LAWS SINCE I HEARD ABOUT THIS PREDICAMENT.”

“And?” Asgore asked.

“YES! WELL! WE HAVE A GOOD CASE.” He opened the book and pulled glasses onto his face. “FIRST, THE REASON FOR THE LAW IS OVERPOPULATION, WHICH ARE DEFINED AS POPULATION NUMBERS THAT ARE UNSUSTAINABLE IN THE CURRENT ENVIRONMENT. GIVEN THAT WE’RE ALL ON THE SURFACE, THIS ISN’T AN ISSUE ANYMORE.”

“YES, EXCELLENT.” Howl nodded.

Asgore nodded as well, “so the basis of the law is obsolete.”

“good,” Sans said.

“YES, WELL, NOT ONLY THAT.” He pushed up his glasses all importantly. “THERE’S ALSO THE LEGALITY OF THE TERM ‘TEMPTING.’ THIS LAW DEFINES IT AS: APPEALING TO OR ATTRACTING ALPHAS AND BETAS THROUGH SCENT, TOUCH, OR ACTIONS, SUCH THAT THE ALPHA OR BETA CANNOT CONTROL THEMSELF AND MUST ENGAGE IN SEXUAL INTERCOURSE WITH THE OMEGA.”

“Well, that’s repulsive,” Tori exclaimed.

“Victim-blaming,” Gore agreed in a mumble.

“AND FURTHERMORE,” Howl said as he put a hand down on the table, “SIMPLY NOT WHAT OCCURS. EVERY ALPHA AND BETA IS PERFECTLY CAPABLE OF CONTROL IF THEY SO CHOOSE TO EXERCISE IT. THE FACT THAT THEY DON’T IS ON PURPOSE.”

“that’s, right. Everyone is in control of their own actions.” Gore sighed, “this law is ridiculous.”

“It shouldn’t be a problem getting it off the books.” Asgore stated. “We just need to talk with Queen Toriel.”

“WELL, THAT IS THE ISSUE,” Howl said. “SHE HAS REFUSED TO GIVE IT UP SO FAR, AND ALREADY HAS COME AFTER BERRY. ONLY MY COLLARING LAW SAVED HIM FROM RETURNING TO THE SANITARIUM.”

“AH, YES, THE COLLARING LAW.” Papyrus flipped to another page of the book closer to the back. “FELLSWAP’S COLLARING LAW IS MUCH CLEARER. A COLLAR IS DEFINED: AS ANY ARTICLE OF CLOTHING OR ACCESSORY WHICH COMPLETELY WRAPS AROUND SOME PART OF ANOTHER MONSTER’S BODY. THE BANDANA HOWL PRESENTED TO BERRY QUALIFIED JUST AS MUCH AS THE ACCESSORY HIS BROTHER IS WEARS.”

Daemon tugged his collar proudly.

“THE THUS-DEFINED COLLAR CONTAINS THE OWNER’S MAGIC AS AN IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM. A COLLARED MONSTER IS CONSIDERED THE OWNER’S PROPERTY FOR THE PURPOSES OF: CLAIMING TAX RETURNS, OBTAINING EXTRA RATIONS, SUING FOR DAMAGES, AND MOST RELEVANT TO THIS CASE, RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE COLLARED’S ACTIONS. BERRY IS HOWL’S LEGAL PROPERTY, AND CANNOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR HIS OWN ACTION LEGALLY. HOWL TAKES FULL RESPONSIBILITY, PAYS ALL FEES, AND RECEIVES ALL PUNISHMENTS UNDER FELLSWAP LAW. BUT HE CANNOT BE PROSECUTED UNDER SWAP LAW, AS HE IS NOT A SWAP CITIZEN. AS BERRY IS HIS POSSESSION, HE IS TECHNICALLY A FELLSWAP CITIZEN AS WELL. THUS, THE QUEEN OF THE SWAP KINGDOM CANNOT CLAIM BERRY <i>OR</i> HOWL. THIS IS THE BASIS OF THE TRIAL IN WHICH THE SULLY LAW WILL BE CALLED INTO QUESTION.”

Howl nodded proudly.

Asgore brought his hand up and stroked his beard. “Hmmm I see. This attack that happened that led to the queen coming for Berry did it happen before or after Howl claimed him?”

“i think berry was claimed after the attack,” Sans offered.

“YES, THAT IS TRUE,” Howl admitted. “I WAS NOT YET DONE WITH THE COLLAR.”

“THAT IS A SMALL PROBLEM,” Papyrus said, frowning.

“Yes,” Asgore agreed. “We will probably have to take the humans’ extradition laws into account? He thought out loud. He turned to Gore. “You intend to back Howl’s claim on Berry and offer him citizenship? What's the human word?” he paused, then snapped his fingers. "Asylum?”

Gore looked up from where he’d been trying to stay invisible. “Oh, um... Well, yes. Of course. Howl’s claim is sensible.”

“THEN FOR THE TIME BEING, WHILE THIS IS ALL PENDING, WE ALERT THE PUBLIC.”

Asgore nodded, “very well. This matter has the backing of the Undertale monsters. As King, we will fully support the Fellswap claim and agree with their law on the matter.”

He dipped his head, pleased. “I’M GLAD TO HEAR IT.” He turned to look at Tori. She was frowning, her paws pressed together.

“We will also support the Fellswap claims and object to the Sully law.”

“EXCELLENT. THEN WE ARE ALL IN AGREEMENT HERE. THE FIRST PRESS CONFERENCE WILL BE THIS EVENING, IF POSSIBLE.”

Asgore asked, “you said she came to return Berry to the Sanitarium. I haven’t heard of one being built. I assumed that the monsters were hospitalized or criminals in jails. Or is she still using the one in the underground?”

Sans was curious about that, too. He was so horrified hearing about the attack that detail escaped him.

“AH, WELL, ABOUT THAT. AS FAR AS OFFICIAL KNOWLEDGE, THERE IS NONE SURROUNDING A SURFACE SANITARIUM,” Howl said.

“BUT THERE IS ONE,” Vex supplied, sitting up straighter. “I KNOW ABOUT IT. HOWEVER, NOTHING I FOUND CAN BE USED <em>LEGALLY...”</em>

Sans grimaced and tsked. “and, what did you find?”

Asgore nodded, waiting to hear as well.

“A LOT OF TERRIBLE THINGS,” Vex said solemnly. “THE OMEGAS THAT ARE STAYING THERE ARE NOT BEING TREATED WELL AT ALL. THEY'RE BEING ABUSED AND RAPED BY THE GUARDS. THEY'RE PUT IN ROOMS WITH NESTS, AND IF THEY TOUCH THE NEST, THEIR COLLAR SHOCKS THEM. THEY ARE TESTED ON HOW TO REACT TO GUARDS COMING INTO THEM. THEY WEAR FILTHY CLOTHES AND ARE CONSTANTLY TERRIFIED. IN ROOMS WITH MORE THAN ONE, WHEN SOMEONE COMES TO THE DOOR THEY SPRING APART INSISTING THEY WEREN'T CUDDLING, JUST TRYING TO STAY WARM."

He straightened his papers in agitation, disturbed all over again from recounting it.

"IT WAS THE WORST LIVING CIRCUMSTANCES I’VE EVER SEEN. THEY’RE BEING TORTURED, NOT CARED FOR.”

Sans clenched his fists and closed his eyes. ‘how could stretch let this happen?’ he thought. He was going to talk to him about being judged in Underswap and find out what was different in his verse.

Sans opened his eyes and looked across the table to Red. If Vex, the ex-captain who had to have seen the worst the Fell had to offer, said it was bad, this was bad. To say it was the worst he’d seen was painful to consider: Fells were known for their violent ways, but they did have a strong code of honor. Well, a lot of them did. He looked at Red. His fingers twitched with the need to hold Red’s. He stuffed them into his blue hoodie.

Asgore looked to Tori. Not that he didn’t believe the skeleton, but he wanted confirmation from a version of his ex-wife that she would believe a version of herself capable of this. After all, this was the first time he had met any of these skeletons. He looked with a silent question, asking her to give her ex-captain credit to his claim.

Tori looked pretty upset at this news, her paws pressing against each other tightly, lips pulled back slightly in a snarl. How disgusting... She sensed the king looking at her and met his gaze with her narrowed red eyes. “And what are you looking at me like that for? _I’m_ not her.”

He nodded. “As Gore and I are not the same monster.” He had to remind himself; they had all been through different things.

“definitely not,” Gore mumbled to himself, fishing around in his bag and wishing he could light a blunt.

“Vex was your captain of the guard underground correct?”

Tori sighed. “I only took up the throne upon reaching the surface, when my ex-husband was executed for treason.”

“I WAS THE GUARD LIEUTENANT, NOT THE CAPTAIN. THAT WOULD BE MY UNDYNE,” Vex supplied. “I WAS UNDER HER DIRECT ORDERS AND MAINTAINED THE SNOWDIN AND WATERFALL AREAS.”

“Vex and Daemon are reliable sources.” Sans added.

Asgore nodded. “Would you,” he asked nobles, “agree that the monsters in the Sanitarium are in danger of falling down if not immediately removed from the care of the Sanitarium? If so, are we in agreement to send in troops to secure and aid the monsters within?”

“COUNTLESS HAVE ALREADY FALLEN DOWN,” Vex said with a frown. “THE PAPER FILES FROM BEFORE THEY REACHED THE SURFACE... SO MANY ARE DECEASED.”

Red looked sick. He wished he could hold Sans. He had nothing productive to say, he just sat there listening to this horror show.

Gore rubbed at his beard. “Well, I’d agree, but we don’t have the authority to do that...”

“UNFORTUNATELY, MR. GORE IS CORRECT.” Papyrus looked very upset. “WHAT’S GOING ON THERE IS HORRIBLE! BUT MY EQUALLY HANDSOME COUNTERPARTS DID GO THERE WITHOUT PERMISSION OR A WARRANT. ANY EVIDENCE THEY’VE GATHERED CANNOT BE USED IN COURT. YOU WOULD HAVE TO OFFICIALLY COME UP WITH A REASON TO GO IN WITH A SEARCH WARRANT AND DECIDE FROM THERE.”

Asgore tsked, and asked Papyrus, “can we officially question Berry and start an Inquiry and get a warrant that way?”

“YES, THAT WOULD DO IT.”

“HE’S NOT READY TO SHARE HIS STORY YET,” Howl said, shaking his head. “HE ONLY JUST HAD HIS FIRST THERAPY SESSION TODAY. BUT I HAVE ALREADY TALKED TO HIM ABOUT SHARING THE STORY PUBLICLY SOMETIME SOON.”

Sans asked, “...is there any other way to get a warrant papyrus?”

“WELL, YOU NEED PROBABLE CAUSE! AT THE MOMENT, THERE ARE NO PUBLIC RECORDS THAT THE SURFACE SANITARIUM EXISTS AT ALL. I WOULD START THERE. PERHAPS GET A STATEMENT FROM AN EMPLOYEE OR TRY TO WRESTLE THE INFORMATION FROM THE SWAP QUEEN HERSELF? THEN, ONCE YOU HAVE A STATEMENT OF WHERE IT IS AND WHAT MIGHT BE HAPPENING THERE, YOU CAN GET YOUR WARRANT AND STORM THE PLACE.”

“Very well. Shall we,” Asgore looked to the other nobles, “have a talk with the Queen of Underswap?”

Tori nodded, looking stern and determined. Gore held in a whine.

“Only if we all do it together...” Like hell he would talk to someone like that alone.

“We will.” Asgore looked to the other skeletons, “please have Berry file a report once he is able. The sooner the better.“ He looked to the other nobles, “We will confront the queen hopefully before the press conference, tonight.”

“I WILL WORK WITH BERRY,” Howl assured. “DAEMON AND I HAVE TAKEN HIM IN FOR THE TIME BEING. JUST IN CASE.”

“uh.” Red felt weird speaking up. He nervously fiddled with his phone. “i’m working on something for him? Something to get him out of a bad situation quick if he needs it. i’ll need a few more days, tho.”

“HAVE YOU MADE ANY PROGRESS ON THE DATA I SENT YOU FROM HIS FILE?” Vex asked his brother.

“oh, uh, yeah, some...” He cringed. “it’s really not good. But I’m not done with it yet.”

Sans flinched; he'd seen pieces of the data.

“Berry’s file?” Asgore asked. “It’s a shame we can’t use that.”

“UNFORTUNATELY NOT,” Vex said with a frown. “I MANAGED TO TAKE PICTURES OF EACH PAGE QUICKLY. WE ALMOST GOT CAUGHT IN THAT ROOM...”

“Alright,” Asgore sighed. “Let us confront the Queen. Hopefully, before the press conference.”

“Yes, let us do that,” Tori agreed, standing. Gore got to his feet also, anxiously nibbling at his claws.

“IT WAS GOOD TO MEET YOU ALL, THANK YOU.” Howl dipped his head.

Asgore stood up. “Yes. Now I have heard rumors of a campaign? To be president of monster kind. Tell us about this.”

Howl looked surprised, then frowned at Sans. “THAT’S NOT PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE. IT’S MERELY A GOAL FOR THE FUTURE.”

Sans smiled guiltily. “Hah.”

“Very well,” Asgore said. He went to take his leave. As he came up to Howl he said, “who knows, if you prove yourself capable, maybe i can start my flower shop one day.”

Howl stood as well, and when Asgore passed by him and said that, he smiled just a little. “I THINK I CAN MAKE THAT HAPPEN, YOUR MAJESTY.” He dipped his head. “IT WAS A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU.”

“Likewise, let me know if you need anything.” He left the room.

Sans got up and sat on Red’s lap.

Red let out a low breath and wrapped his arms around his boyfriend. “that was painful,” he grumbled.

“BUT I THINK WE TALKED ABOUT EVERYTHING WE HAD TO,” Vex said.

“YES, I AGREE.” Howl nodded. “WE HAVE A MORE SOLID PLAN. THAT IS A GOOD THING.”

Sans nodded. “ya. I wouldn’t mind putting in a little extra work and judging the Queen though.”

“i guess you’re not allowed, since she’s not part of your kingdom...”

“WHAT DIFFERENCE WOULD IT MAKE?” Howl asked, tugging absently at his gloves. “SHE’S NOT BREAKING ANY OF HER OWN LAWS.”

“she may not be breaking the law, but she can still feel her sins crawling down her back. A guilty conscience is a heavy burden.”

“IS THAT HOW JUDGING WORKS?” Howl tilted his head, curious in spite of himself. “YOU CAN ACTUALLY MAKE HER FEEL THINGS?”

“Well, i’m not sure about Stretch anymore, but for me, the Judge is an entity. Magic chose me as its vessel. It wasn’t my choice. I’m kinda just along for the ride.” He wasn’t sure how much he wanted to tell them, but he promised Paps and Red to be honest with them. The others here were pretty much family. “I see the crimes as they relive it. If the Judge and I deem the crimes need punishment by violence, we give karmic retribution.” He wasn’t sure how well he could explain it without showing them. Judging them. It wasn’t something he wanted to do, ever.

“sounds really hard,” Red mumbled, nuzzling Sans’s shoulder.

“HE GETS QUITE TIRED AFTERWARDS,” Papyrus agreed.

“HMM, I SEE. STRETCH HASN’T INDICATED ANYTHING SIMILAR...”

“ACTUALLY,” Vex interjected, “HE TOLD ME TO BE CAREFUL WHAT I TELL HIM. HE SAID THE QUEEN CAN FORCE HIM TO TELL HER THINGS BECAUSE OF HER MAGIC AND HIM BEING THE JUDGE.”

“hmmm, for me the Judge won’t lie when it is in control and my monarch can summon the Judge if he wants to. So that might be the same for the Stretch.”

“IT MIGHT BE. I’M NOT SURE. HE ISN’T FOND OF TALKING ABOUT IT, SO I HAVEN’T PRESSED HIM,” Vex admitted.

Red declined to mention that Vex had hammered into him the importance of talking openly and honestly with a datemate. But he wanted to.

“well it sounds like stretch needs to answer some questions,” Sans replied.

“WELL... YES...” Vex frowned. “I’LL SEE WHAT I CAN DO.”

“OPEN COMMUNICATION IS VERY IMPORTANT IN ANY RELATIONSHIP, ROMANTIC OR OTHERWISE,” Howl said. Red hid his snort in Sans’s shoulder.

Sans looked at Papyrus and teased lightly, “hmmm, that sounds familiar.”

“YOU’RE RIGHT, IT’S BECAUSE I CONSTANTLY TELL YOU THAT MYSELF,” Papyrus said primly.

“and you tell me the same stuff, bro,” Red said, making Vex flush.

Sans chuckled. “i’m sure howl has things to do for his press conference. we should head out. did anyone need a lift?”

“YES, THAT I DO. I MUST PREPARE MY SPEECH.” Howl nodded. “I WOULD NOT MIND A LIFT, IF IT’S NOT TOO MUCH TROUBLE. I DON’T WANT TO PULL DAEMON AWAY FROM BERRY RIGHT NOW.”

“RED, YOU’LL TAKE ME HOME?” Vex asked.

“yeah, bro, sure.”

Sans gave Red a quick kiss on the cheek and got up, “no problem.” Sans held out his hand.

Howl reached out to carefully laying his hand on top of Sans’s. His gloves were soft cotton, a shield from bare-boned touch. Red ported his brother away with a semi-serious salute, after one last stolen kiss to Sans’s cheek.

Sans held Howl’s hand, “nice gloves.” He ported them outside Howl’s place.

“THANK YOU.”

* * *

Daemon returned to the house not five minutes after he’d left with Howl. He knocked on Berry’s door gently.

Berry was under his new bed. Talking back to the voice had been a bad idea. It yelled over and over, memories insulting his battered mind.

~~Why can’t you learn? Dirty little things. If you insist, I’ll just have to try this…~~

He flinched and his ribs ached around the hole. He curled up a bit more around the arch. 

Softness brushed against the bottom of his chin. He reached for it. It was beautiful, soft, and warm. A wonderful scent clenched to it; Howl. 

He breathed deeply and held desperately to the sense of safety it had. It felt like an oasis in the desert of pain.

A knock had some hazy memories clear from his mind and his voice was shaky when he called out, “H-HELLO?”

Daemon cracked open the door. “berry?” he asked. “i’m back from taking howl over to the embassy. how are you?”

“I didn’t get my writing done...” Berry’s voice was softer, “I’m bad...” The horrible finally quieted some as he admitted it.

“berry...” He came inside and sat down next to the bed. “it’s okay, you didn’t have to do it right away. i wasn’t gone that long. we’ve got all day, right?”

“WE DO...?” Berry tried to uncurl a bit. “OKAY.”

He smiled. “okay. you wanna come out from under there? or we can just stay like this, if you don’t wanna get out.”

Berry really wanted to sit with Daemon. He always felt protected and warm in his arms. The voice had been screeching at him vehemently since he talked back to it. He wanted it to stop. He had already admitted to being bad, but it wanted more. 

“CAN WE SIT TOGETHER?”

“of course we can!” He beamed. “you could even sit on my lap, if you want.”

“I’D LIKE THAT...”

~~SULLY TEMPTRESS.~~

The tormented monster pointed out, ‘DAEMON SAID, I CAN’T TEMPT HIM.’

Berry crawled out from under the bed slowly and carefully of his healing shoulder. The bone was thinly connected and sensitive. He wiped at his sockets.

Daemon gently pulled him closer and hovered a hand over the bandages. “do you want me to see if i can heal this anymore?”

“YES,” Berry nodded. “PLEASE.”

“alright. i’ll take these bandages off and replace them when i’m done.” He pulled the first aid kit from his inventory and carefully started pulling off the bandages in place.

Berry sat in front of Daemon, trying to sit still. He watched the enormous hands and said, “I TRIED TO BE GOOD. I SAID WHAT MS. CANDY SAID TO.” The smaller skeleton used his free hand to play with the bandana as he held it out of Daemon’s way and said hesitantly, “I DON’T WANT TO DO IT AGAIN.”

“uh-huh?” He set the bandages aside, to be tossed out later, and hovered a hand over the injury, both of which glowed dark green. “okay, well, why not?”

Berry fidgeted a bit. ‘I DON’T WANT DAEMON TO THINK I’M CRAZY, BUT MAYBE I AM.’ He had been hearing this voice since the Sanitarium, but Daemon was nice. He helped and protected him. ‘HE WON’T THINK I’M CRAZY, RIGHT?’

“IT MADE THE VOICE MAD...” He looked away. “IT'S BEEN YELLING AT ME SINCE THEN. IT MADE BE REMEMBER SOME OF MY LESSONS. THAT I AM BAD, SULLY.”

“the voice?” he repeated, keeping up the healing. But his other hand reached up to gently land on Berry’s skull, petting softly like one might a beloved cat or dog. “you have a voice telling you bad things? does it sound like yours?”

“NO.” He leaned into the touch.

“okay. does it sound like anyone you know?”

He thought about it. “IT SOUNDS LIKE DOCTOR GASTER.”

“oh.” He sounded startled. Then he sighed, letting the healing magic come to a halt. He picked up the roll of bandages to unravel it. “he must have done something to you... put his voice in you... how long has it been there?”

“ABOUT THE TIME HE DID THE EXPERIMENTAL TREATMENTS,” he rolled the soft material between his fingers. “I TRY TO IGNORE IT. TO PUSH IT TO THE BACK OF MY MIND LIKE THE MEMORIES, BUT WHEN I'M BAD IT GETS LOUD.“

Daemon nodded. “yeah... he definitely did something to you. i’m so sorry, berry. i, um...” He paused in re-wrapping Berry’s shoulder. His voice got quieter. “i get that too.”

Berry looked up at Daemon, relieved it wasn’t just him and guilty for feeling the relief. “YOU DO?” It dawned on Berry that Daemon didn’t use past tense. “WHO DO YOU HEAR?”

His usually calm, cheery expression was set in a frown now. “i hear... my dad,” he said, his voice almost a whisper. “he never touched me like he did to howl, but... he had other plans for me. when we were growing up, he... made me hurt people.”

Berry’s soul ached. “I’M SORRY, DAEMON.” He leaned in and touched their foreheads together. “YOU ARE SO STRONG.” Berry took a deep breath. Daemon's scent was a strong wonderful alpha scent, safe and caring. “DESPITE WHAT HE DID, YOU’RE NICE, AND SWEET. YOU’RE STILL YOU.”

Daemon let his forehead rest on Berry’s, his eyelights a little dim. He smiled a little, but it was almost sad. “i try my best, but the voice never totally goes away. dad’s been dead for a super long time, but... he’s still there, in my head. n’ when he tells me to hurt people, i...” He looked down. “it’s so hard to fight it. but... when i start to lose myself, howl is there. he’s my master. i do whatever he says, and when he tells me not to attack, then i don’t attack... master’s voice is louder than dad’s.”

“HOWL IS A GREAT MASTER.” He took a few seconds to collect his thoughts. “I KNOW HOW THAT FEELS,” Berry confided. “YOU AND HOWL MAKE THE VOICE QUIETER.”

“he is. he’s really, really great. i love him so much.” He smiled a little again. “and i’m glad we help. any time the voice becomes too much, tell us, okay?”

“OKAY,” Berry enjoyed the closeness. He wanted to reach out and hold Daemon. The short monster’s soul was beating loudly in his chest. Daemon made the smaller skeleton feel safe, and the voice was quieter. They were the same in a way. It made Berry feel connected to him. “THANK YOU.” 

‘DAEMON SAID I COULD HUG HIM ANYTIME,’ Berry recalled as he gently lifted his head and lowered it to rest on Deamon shoulder and wrapped in arms around his caring, safe alpha in a tender embrace.

“you’re welcome. and i think you should keep saying what ms. candy told you to. but it’s up to you.”

He made a pleased sort of sound as Berry hugged him. His arms wrapped carefully around the smaller skeleton, holding him there in Daemon’s lap tenderly. Daemon wanted to nuzzle him, maybe even give him a kiss or two, but he hadn’t been given permission. He would never take what wasn’t offered.

“I DONT KNOW.” Berry wasn’t sure, “MAYBE TOMORROW WITH YOU OR HOWL NEARBY.” Daemon's arms around him felt so warm and secure. Like nothing outside could hurt him again as long as Daemon held him tenderly. A gentle purr worked its way from him. ‘Daemon is truly good at hugs,’ he thought. This was a feeling he wanted to keep forever.

Berry carefully kept his thoughts away for the growing need to kiss his alpha. He would not ruin this.

“yeah, that’s fine. we can be there every time, if you need.” He delighted in Berry’s purr and reached up to gently pet him again. “if i’m like a dog, you’re like a cat,” he decided.

Berry chuckled at that. “I’LL GLADLY BE YOUR PUSSYCAT.”

He resisted the urge to laugh, knowing Berry didn’t know exactly what he’d just said. But his face had flushed a little. “you like cuddles and you purr. that’s why your purr is a delightful sound.”

Berry nuzzled into Daemon. “I DO LIKE CUDDLES.” His purr got a little louder at the praise.

“me too. i really love cuddles. master has trouble even touching me, unfortunately. so we can cuddle all the time!”

“YEAH WE CAN CUDDLE ALL THE TIME.” Berry agreed, he was really enjoying being held and the pets. A cobalt blue blush bloomed on Berry’s face at the idea of unlimited cuddling.

He took a deep breath full of Daemon’s spicy barbeque and smoke smell, before saying, “MS. CANDY WELL HELP US.”

“yeah! she seems to know what she’s doing. i dunno which land she came from...” He thought about that. “might’ve been tale, maybe fell?”

Berry thought about that. “Why not Fellswap?”

“i dunno. she might’ve been. i’ve never seen her before, but we didn’t go to hotland or the capitol a lot.”

Berry didn’t say why she wouldn’t be underswap. He couldn’t picture one of his kind being nice after knowing his secret. That gave a small pang of grief in his heart. Al _had_ been a friend.

Daemon hummed and pet him again. “...what’s wrong, berry?”

Berry's purr had stopped. “I WAS THINKING. SHE CAN’T BE UNDERSWAP,” he said sadly, “THAT MADE ME THINK OF AL. WE CAN’T BE FRIENDS ANYMORE. SHE KNOWS ABOUT ME NOW. THAT MEANS ‘DYNE WILL KNOW TOO. I CAN’T BE FRIENDS WITH HER EITHER. SHE WAS STRETCH’S FRIEND TOO.”

“oh, yeah, probably not...” He nodded slowly. Then he frowned. “well... i think you can still be friends! do you really think she wouldn’t wanna because of this?”

“I DONT KNOW, MAYBE?” he sighed. “MONSTERS LOOK DOWN ON SULLYS AND THE QUEEN IS MAD AT ME.” He shivered. “HOWL MADE IT SO AL COULDN’T DO HER JOB. HER JOB IS VERY IMPORTANT TO HER.”

“yeah, but...” He kept frowning. “aren’t friends important to her too? if you guys are really friends... she should be more worried about you than her job.” Though, he supposed it was possible that worry could manifest in wanting to get him ‘treated’ if she didn’t know any better. That was a worrying thought.

He easily recited the lies they forced him to say for hours at a time, “SULLY CAN’T CONTROL THEMSELVES. WE NEED TO BE TRAINED AND WATCHED BY FAMILY. WE WILL TEMPT AND INFLICT OURSELVES ON THE REST OF MONSTER KIND IF NOT CONTROLLED.”

It was strikingly familiar to Daemon. It was almost like the mantra that was being beaten into the monsters the day he infiltrated the Sanatorium.

Daemon’s expression only got more upset. “but none of that is true. you’re not the one who can’t control yourself. besides, even if it were, she’s your _friend._ that means supporting you even if she thinks you need... _help.”_ That didn’t cover it. The offered help was bad, but it was the best way he could think to phrase it.

Berry balled up a bit. He was making Daemon upset. “I DON'T KNOW WHAT SHE’LL DO, BUT IT'S BEST FOR SULLY TO ONLY RELY ON FAMILY.”

“that’s wrong and bad.” Daemon looked agitated. “what are friends for if not to rely on? to feel safe and good with? everyone should have friends! _especially_ struggling people! friends make you strong... but... they don’t want you strong.” He sagged. “they want you weak and scared... it’s not right...”

“SULLY ARE NOT SAFE. FEELING GOOD AND SAFE LEADS TO TEMPTING. LEADS TO UNWANTED CHILDREN. IT LEADS TO THE SANITARIUM.”

~~Sully that are breaking rules need a correction.~~

Realization hit him. He was feeling safe, loved even. He was tempting, but Daemon resisted his temptation. 

He needed to stop being bad. “I SHOULD GET DOWN.”

“you _are_ safe. you’re so safe.” He held Berry tighter. “no one will hurt you again. and if you ever decide to have children, that’s okay. nobody can tell you no. you want what master says to be true, right? then let it be true.”

“I DO WANT IT TO BE TRUE.” A steadily growing tremor was playing through Berry. “BUT I’M BEING BAD.”

~~Horrible, filthy, tempting good clean monsters.~~

He pulled his head up over his acoustic meatus.

“I WANT IT, BUT..”

“you’re not being bad. you’re being so good. i promise.” He rubbed Berry’s back. “i’m not hurting you. i’m not trying to take you. and i’m an alpha. you’re not tempting me. i really promise.”

He took some deep gulps of air. Air that was filled with the tangy smoky barbecue sent. 

“I’M NOT TEMPTING. I’M BEING GOOD,” he whispered. Trying to find that safe, warm, fuzzy feeling from earlier. He focused on the heated hug that felt like home. Slowly the voice grew quieter. His trembling leasing as he repeated, “I’M BEING GOOD. DAEMON HAS ME. I’M SAFE. HE WILL KEEP ME SAFE.”

“yeah. yeah, there you go.” He smiled again, some of his own tension easing. “you’re being good. i’ve got you. i won’t let anyone hurt you, berry.” He kept gently rubbing at Berry’s back. His hands, no, his entire body, warmer than most monsters’ bodies were. Overly warm, like a fireplace on a white winter’s day.

The fearful monster melted into the other’s warmth. After a few minutes, the shaking stopped. Berry said fondly, “YOU’RE THE BEST HUGGER.”

He smiled more at that, proud. “thanks! you’re pretty good at it too.”

Berry cuddled on top of Daemon like a cat basking in the warm sun. He didn’t want to move.


	10. We All Suffer but We Recover Just to Discover Life Where We All Are

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a chicken tower is built and a spice cake is baked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Monday and we're back! I hope you like this chapter, a lot happens! Did you see this coming? Let us know in the comments! Tell us what you think will happen next!
> 
> GetMcDunkedOn: Sorry it's a bit later in the day than usual ;u; been a rough day. Mind the tags!

Howl found the other two skeletons still cuddling on the floor of Berry’s room. He slowly opened the door that still hung open by a crack to check as soon as he got home. He looked down at them cuddling on the floor, and one side of his mouth quirked up into something that was almost a smile.

“I BELIEVE THE MEETING WENT WELL. I HAVE A SPEECH TO WRITE FOR THIS EVENING. DO YOU TWO NEED ANYTHING?”

Berry perked up at hearing Howl. “THAT’S GOOD TO HEAR.” He shook his head. “I DON’T NEED ANYTHING, BUT WHAT TIME IS YOUR MEETING TONIGHT?”

“I CALLED A FEW NEWS STATIONS, AND IT SEEMS I’LL BE GOING LIVE AT SEVEN O’CLOCK.” He checked the time. “I ONLY HAVE A FEW HOURS. PERHAPS YOU TWO CAN HANDLE COOKING?”

Berry beamed at that. “OF COURSE!” he said excitedly and got up. “LEAVE IT TO US!”

Daemon chuckled and let him go, standing up as well. He stretched. “did you want either of us to be there, master?”

Howl considered that. “I’M NOT SURE. IT’S PROBABLY BEST IF BERRY ISN’T THERE, I DON’T WANT THE REPORTERS HOUNDING HIM. I WOULD LIKE YOU THERE, BUT I DON’T WANT TO LEAVE BERRY ALONE...”

“I COULD VISIT MY BROTHER OR HE COULD COME HERE.” He realized after a moment that he shouldn’t invite a monster to a house he was visiting and added, “IF YOU ALLOW IT.”

Howl thought about that. “IT’S NOT THAT I MIND. I TRUST YOUR BROTHER. BUT I HEARD MENTION THAT IF THE QUEEN ORDERS HIM TO DO SOMETHING, HE HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO COMPLY. I DON’T THINK HE’LL MIND IF SOMEONE ELSE IS ALSO THERE.”

“i think it’s red’s night off,” Daemon offered.

Berry looked sad. “HE’S THE JUDGE SO HE HAS TO FOLLOW THE LAW.” He said more to remind himself.

“YES, ABOUT THAT. SANS EXPLAINED TO ME HOW BEING THE JUDGE WORKS FOR HIM. I DON’T THINK IT’S THE SAME FOR STRETCH. HOW DOES IT WORK?”

Berry sat back down on Daemon’s lap. “WELL HE IS THE JUDGE. HE PASSED THE TRIALS TO BECOME IT WHEN I WAS LOCKED AWAY,” he said sadly as he leaned into the warm skeleton, trying not to think about the Sanitarium. He was quiet for a few soul beats, letting Daemon fill his senses, reminding himself, ‘I’M SAFE NOW. I’M JUST TELLING FACTS.’ Once he was calm, he continued. “WHOMEVER PROVES WORTHY OF THE JUDGE, BY PASSING THE TRIALS, ENTERS INTO AN ANCIENT CONTRACT WITH MAGIC AND THE MONARCHY. THE JUDGE’S ROLE IS TO BE THE TRUTH SEEKER. JUSTICE IS LEFT TO THE MONARCHY.”

Visions of his own trial were breaking through the dam of his mind, flooding him with memories of how tiny and impotent he felt in front of the strong magic presence. “THE JUDGE RULED BY THE LETTER OF THE MONARCH'S LAWS." Berry shivered. "THERE IS NO GREY IN THE LAW. YOU ARE INNOCENT OR YOU ARE GUILTY,” he said sadly. It didn't matter that he didn’t mean to tempt. It didn't matter that he didn't want to be used. Only that he broke the laws. He could still hear the queen sending him to the Sanitarium. Just like she did the other day. “THE MONARCHY DECIDES THE PUNISHMENT TO FIT THE CRIME.”

Howl considered all of that. “WHAT ARE THESE TRIALS? WHAT EXACTLY IS THE MAGIC POWER HE IS GRANTED? IS HE POSSESSED?”

“I DON’T KNOW THE TRIALS.” He fidgeted and looked at the ground. He couldn't look them in the face, too ashamed of what he was. “WHEN I WAS JUDGED SULLY, IT WAS THE OLD JUDGE.” He shivered again. His eyelights were hazy and he had a faraway look and cuddled into Daemon looking for comfort and protection. “THE JUDGE, THEIR EYES WERE GLOWING GOLD AND VOICE WAS ECHOING.” He took a few deep, shaky breaths. “I.. I... HAD TO TELL THE TRUTH TO ANY QUESTIONS THAT WERE ASKED. I COULDN’T THINK ABOUT LYING.”

“I SEE. I’LL HAVE TO ASK HIM, THOUGH I HAVE A FEELING HE WON’T BE ABLE TO TELL ME EITHER.” He sighed. “GLOWING GOLD AND AN ECHO-Y VOICE... AND A COMPULSION TO TELL THE TRUTH. INTERESTING. SO WERE THEY THE ONE WHO DECLARED YOU GUILTY, OR WAS IT THE QUEEN?”

“THE JUDGE DID. I BROKE THE LAW. I TEMPT MONSTERS, BY BEING OUT DURING A HEAT. NO ADULT FAMILY WITH ME TO KEEP ME IN LINE. NO PILLS TO SUPPRESS IT.” Berry's eyelights were becoming hazier as he recalled the facts from his trial. “THE QUEEN SENTENCED ME TO THE SANITARIUM FOR CORRECTION AND TRAINING.”

~~Dirty Sully. You deserve what you got. Can't even be trained properly. Don't worry, I'll find a way to make you useful.~~

“I SEE. SO THE JUDGE REALLY DOES COMPLY WITH THE LAWS THE QUEEN MAKES, NOT A MORAL BASELINE.” He frowned. “VERY UNFORTUNATE. WELL, IN ANY CASE. I HAVE TO GO WRITE MY SPEECH. YOU TWO CAN KEEP-” he waved a hand absently, “DOING THAT FOR A LITTLE WHILE, YOU DON’T HAVE TO START ON DINNER IMMEDIATELY.”

~~Sully need to learn their place!~~

Berry nodded and curled into Daemon, his enthusiasm for making dinner gone. Remembering his trial had brought back terrible memories. “DAEMON, THE VOICE IS GETTING LOUD.”

Daemon held onto him again. “well, the voice needs to go away,” he said firmly. “you’re okay. i’m right here. everything’s okay. you want me to pet you again?”

Howl looked concerned at this, his gaze going between the two of them. He wanted to stay and help, but he was really crunched for time... He carefully peeled off his gloves and gave them to Daemon, then left the room, closing the door to just a crack.

“PLEASE.” Berry cuddled into the warmth as he said to himself, “I’M SAFE HERE.” He gave his bandana a squeeze. “I’M BEING GOOD NOW.”

“yeah. here. you can pet these.” Daemon handed the gloves over. “they smell like master.” Then he started to gently pet Berry’s head.

Berry gently ran his fingers over the soft material. He focused on the texture of it, soft. They had the scent of grapes to them, Howl’s signature smell. They’d been knitted with care. The pats on his head were rhythmic, and the delicious smoky smell of safety of home. His sockets drooped as his second wind was spent. Berry tried to fight sleep. He wanted to cook, but he was so emotionally drained by today’s events.

‘MAYBE JUST A QUICK NAP,’ he thought.

Daemon kept petting at Berry’s head. “you can take a nap, it’s okay. i’m here.”

The smaller monster nodded, hugging the gloves close. He could smell the wonderful grape smell of Howl mixed with Daemon as sleep took him.

* * *

Daemon held him for a while longer. Eventually, he pulled out his phone and opened one of those food delivery apps. Howl might get a little exasperated, but he’d probably appreciate something hot, fresh, with plenty of spice, and Daemon wasn’t a great cook. Indian food it was.

When the doorbell rang, Daemon got up and gently put Berry on the couch. He wanted to tuck a blanket around him, but he worried about Berry freaking out about it. So he just draped one over the top of the couch, there for Berry to touch if he pleased. Then he went to answer the door and get the food.

A teenage human had some bags. "You Daemon?" He asked.

"that's me!" He beamed. He had a tip in hand.

"Sweet." The kid smiled at the sight of the money. "Got ya order." He handed over the bag.

"thanks! i really appreciate it." He handed the money over and collected their food. He had tandoori chicken for himself, mild butter chicken for Berry, and of course, rogan josh for Howl, who was always a fan of less staple meats and a long, quality list of spices. He had also added on a yummy rice pudding for dessert. "have a nice night." Sweet smile.

"Thanks man you too." The kid put the money in his pocket and left.

Daemon got the door closed and hummed as he set all the food in the kitchen. He went to grab Howl first, who was re-reading his final draft of his speech for the fourteenth time just in case, and bid him to come eat. Then he went over to Berry to gently shake him awake.

"HMMM." Berry squinted at Daemon then rubbed his sockets. "YES?" His face had a light flush to it as he woke up.

Daemon smiled at him. "dinner's here. i got us indian food."

"OH, THANK YOU." Berry rubbed his sockets again. That's right, he was going to cook, but fell asleep.

"I'M SORRY. I'LL COOK BREAKFAST TOMORROW."

"that's okay, no need to be sorry. but i'd love to eat your food tomorrow morning." He led Berry to the kitchen table. Howl was just settling in with his own food.

"HOW DO YOU FEEL, BERRY?"

"TIRED, BUT BETTER." He yawned. "IT'S BEEN A HARD DAY, BUT DAEMON’s A GREAT HUGGER!" he said with a smile and looked over to him.

"THAT'S GOOD. YES, HE CERTAINLY IS." He nodded. "YOU CAN GO BACK TO SLEEP AFTER WE EAT, IF YOU'D LIKE. I ALREADY CALLED RED AND STRETCH TO HAVE THEM COME OVER BEFORE I LEAVE."

"I WANT TO VISIT A BIT. STRETCH WILL PROBABLY WANT TO KNOW HOW THE VISIT WITH MS. CANDY WENT. HE’S BEEN TRYING TO GET ME TO GO TO THERAPIST FOR A LONG TIME."

Berry moved the chicken around on his plate a bit before asking, "WHEN YOU GO ON THE NEWS, ARE YOU GOING TO TELL THEM MY NAME?"

"OH, YES, I'M SURE HE WILL. WHATEVER YOU WOULD LIKE TO DO IS FINE." He nodded. At the question, he paused. "DO YOU NOT WANT ME TO?"

Berry shrugged. "I DON'T KNOW." He put down the fork.

"WELL, THINK ABOUT IT. WHILE YOU EAT." He indicated the abandoned fork. "THERE WILL BE NO MEAL-SKIPPING IN MY HOUSE."

Berry frowned, and looked at the fork like it betrayed him, then picked it up. He pushed the food around some more and thought, 'IF THEY KNOW, I CAN'T GO OUT ALONE ANYMORE.' He stacked the chicken and used some rice to make a little wall around it. 'IT DOESN'T MATTER, ANYWAYS. AL HAS BEEN ORDERED TO TAKE ME IN,' he thought. When his chicken tower was completed he said, "YOU CAN TELL THEM IF YOU WANT."

"IT'S NOT ABOUT WHAT I WANT," he said, a little gentler. "EVENTUALLY, YOUR NAME WILL BE PUBLIC. IT WOULD BE DIFFICULT TO KEEP YOUR IDENTITY SECRET AND APPEAL TO PEOPLE. BUT IF IT TRULY MAKES YOU UNCOMFORTABLE, THEN I WILL FIND A WAY TO MAKE IT WORK WITHOUT YOUR NAME."

"IT DOESN'T MATTER IF IT’S NOW OR LATER. THEY WILL KNOW." He knocked down the chicken tower. He was nervous, but he wanted to make a difference. "I WANT TO HELP OTHERS. I WANT TO BE BRAVE."

"BERRY, PLEASE EAT THE FOOD," he said neutrally, though his brow twitched a little when the 'tower' was knocked back down. "THAT'S GOOD. I'M GLAD YOU DO. IF IT HELPS, I'VE NO INTENTION OF GIVING OUR ADDRESS OR YOUR LAST NAME. JUST BERRY."

That helped a lot his anxiety drop to manageable levels. He looked at the chicken. It was cooked nice and looked moist and juicy. He poked at it a few more times before he speared a piece. He was making Howl upset, and he didn't want to do that. 'HOWL IS HELPING," he told himself, 'STOP UPSETTING HIM. BE GOOD.' He bit into the chicken. It was just as good as it looked.

"IT DOSE HELP. THANK YOU"

Howl looked pleased again when Berry finally started eating. "ALRIGHT. I'M GLAD. HOW IS THE FOOD?"

"IT'S DELICIOUS." He was happy with the pleased note in Howl's voice. He felt a little pride that he could do something right and make Howl happy. He took another bit with some rice. "HOW IS YOURS, AND YOURS TOO DAEMON?"

"MINE IS ALRIGHT. I COULD MAKE IT BETTER, THOUGH."

"i like mine," Daemon agreed. "but master's the best cook."

"NATURALLY!"

Berry smiled at the banter and took another bit. It became easier to eat as they talked about other things. "ALL OF THE FOOD HOWL HAS MADE IS GREAT. I NEVER HAD THIS TYPE OF FOOD, BUT IT STILL FANTASTIC."

"this is indian food!"

"I HAVE A FONDNESS FOR MOST ASIAN FOOD I'VE TRIED, THOUGH THERE IS MUCH I HAVE NOT YET LEARNED ABOUT. I LIKE THINGS WITH SOME SPICE."

Berry filed that piece of information away for later. A brief spark of excitement as he thought about making something special. "WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE SPICES?"

"OH, I DON'T REALLY HAVE FAVORITES, PER SE." He waved a hand. "BUT I AM FOND OF MOST ASIAN SPICES I'VE TRIED. SZECHUAN, CHILI, CURRY, PEPPER, THAT SORT OF THING. OF COURSE THERE ARE ANY NUMBER OF SPICES, ESPECIALLY IN CURRY. IT'S A LOT TO LEARN."

"IN THE ANIME AL AND ‘DYNE BROUGHT OVER, THEY COOKED CURRY AND PUT CHOCOLATE IN IT. IT WAS STRANGE, BUT INTERESTING."

"YES, THAT IS CORRECT, MANY CURRIES HAVE CHOCOLATE IN THEM. OR, MORE TRADITIONALLY, COCOA BEANS, WHICH ARE WHAT CHOCOLATE IS MADE FROM.” Howl looked so pleased to be teaching food information. “IT CAN ENHANCE THE FLAVOR AND OFFER A SMOOTH TEXTURE, AND EVEN A PLEASANT COLOR."

"WOW," Berry said. "WE SHOULD TRY TO MAKE SOME, ONE DAY. IT WOULD BE FUN."

"WE CAN DO THAT IF YOU'D LIKE, YES. I CAN TEACH YOU MANY THINGS."

Berry's soul fluttered. "I WOULD LOVE TO! THANK YOU FOR TEACHING ME!"

"YOU'RE QUITE WELCOME." He nodded and finished up his food.

Berry noticed Howl and Daemon were almost done. "ARE YOU TWO STILL HUNGRY? THERE’S PLENTY HERE IF YOU WANT MORE." He offered his food to them.

"ah, no, berry, that's yours," Daemon said gently. "don't worry about us. i got a small dessert, too. please finish?"

Berry nodded. He couldn't help but worry about his family, but he felt relieved to hear that there was more ready for his Howl and Demon if they wanted it. "OKAY.” He finished up his dinner.

They both looked very pleased when he finished his food, and Daemon brought over the rice pudding to split with everyone. Howl was moderately pleased with it, though he mentioned what he would've put in to make it amazing.

Berry smiled at Howl's commentary as he finished the dessert.

Both other skeletons watched to make sure that Berry finished his food. Daemon then got up. "i'll handle cleaning up while you get ready, okay master?"

"YES, THANK YOU. I MUST CHANGE AND RUN THROUGH THE SCRIPT ONE MORE TIME." Howl got up to return to his room.

Berry collected the plates and brought them to the sink for Damon. "I CAN DRY THEM. IF THAT'S OKAY."

"sure, that's fine." Daemon smiled at him. "i'll point out where things get put away."

"OKAY." Berry smiled, happy to be useful. "I'LL GET TO LEARN THE KITCHEN THAT WAY."

"yeah, exactly!" He nodded. He washed each dish carefully and handed them over to Berry to dry, humming quietly.

Berry let the normalcy of the moment feel him with happiness. He was a monster doing dishes with his new family. A family that he got to choose and love. One that was caring for him and trying to keep him safe. It was something he always wanted, but never thought he, a filthy Sully, could be worthy of this. It was also like what his brother had. A few happy tears escaped, but he quickly wiped them away.

Daemon glanced over, still humming. "you okay, berry?"

He gave a bright smile. "YES." He went up to Daemon and reached around him and gave him a tender embrace. "THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING THING TODAY. YOU'RE WONDERFUL."

Daemon made a pleased sound and hugged back, nuzzling the top of his head gently. "you're welcome! you're also wonderful. i'm really glad i can help, i like being helpful! and i like you~"

"I LIKE YOU TOO." Berry blushed brightly. 

Just then there was a knock at the front door.

"I'LL GET IT."

"no, wait." Daemon carefully pushed Berry behind him. "you stay here, i'll get it." Just in case. He went to the door and peeked through the spyhole. Stretch gave a wave at the door. Red was standing next to him. He relaxed and opened the door with a smile. "hiya, guys! come in, we just finished dinner."

"cool." Red came right in, hands stuck in his pockets as usual. "oh, nice place. wow. bet the boss'd be jealous."

Stretch followed. "looking great. you're right, he'll want to know your designer." He walked over to Berry and knelt down and gave him a hug. "hey there, bro. they’re being good to you?"

"THEY HAVE BEEN WONDERFUL," Berry said with stars in his eyelights.

"well, that's good." Red went over to the couch and plopped down. "it's only been a day, but still." He was fiddling with something in his pocket.

"IT'S BEEN A VERY LONG DAY." Berry walked with Stretch over to the couch. "WE WENT TO SEE MS. CANDY. THEN OUT TO LUNCH."

Stretch sat down and pulled Berry close to them, then looked at Daemon. "so you stayed with him?" He tried to suppress his jealousy as he patted Barry's head.

"oh, yeah!" Daemon nodded. "i haven't left him alone. it was nice. i think it helped a lot! it's no problem." He sat down too. "we got milkshakes afterwards, too."

"oh, cool." Red nodded. "sounds pretty great.

"i'm glad you went and thanks for taking him," Stretch said.

"YEAH IT WAS GREAT. THE SPIDERS BROUGHT THE FOOD DOWN, IT’S ALWAYS SO NEAT WHEN THEY DO THAT." He leaned into his brother. "WE HAD A VERY GOOD TIME THERE."

"i'm glad ya did." He gave a little squeeze. "did ms. candy give you homework to do?"

"oh, yeah. he's to write in a journal and say nice things about himself every day!"

"those are sensible things."

Berry hid in his brother's side. 'THE VOICE MAKES IT HARD THOUGH,' he thought.

Stretch rubbed Berry’s side. "it'll be okay, bro."

"yeah, everything will be okay! and master's speech is gonna be great. are you guys gonna watch it on tv?"

Red's hand kept fiddling in his pocket. "sure, buddy. we'll turn it on. berry, um, you okay?"

Berry looked up at Red. "IT WILL GET BETTER..."

'I HOPE,' he thought silently.

"you keep saying and it will."

"yeah, exactly! positive affirmations!" Daemon agreed with a bright smile.

Red smiled a little bit. ‘sounds fake, but ok,' he thought to himself, but he didn't say it out loud. "alright, well, that's good. i'm glad to hear it. if you ever wanna, uh, talk? i'm here, ok? about, uh... you know... stuff."

Berry was shocked, but happy about the offer from his brother-in-law. He had thought the other times Red had asked Berry if he wanted to talk that he was just asking due to social nicety. When he didn’t take the offers, Red would let it be and move on. He felt bad not taking up his offer and talking to him before. "THANK YOU RED. I MIGHT TAKE YOU UP ON YOU LATER." He wasn't sure he wanted to acknowledge the voice right now. "YOU BAKE RIGHT?"

Red nodded, perking up. "oh, yeah. i'm really big on baking. why, you wanna learn?"

"I DO."

Howl came back down the stairs, dressed in the same formal wear he'd been wearing the first time he came to family game night. He had his speech in hand. "DAEMON AND I MUST BE OFF. AH, GOOD, YOU TWO ARE HERE."

Berry pushed himself away for his brother and went up to Howl. He wanted to reach out and hug him, but held out only his hand. "I KNOW YOU'LL BE MAGNIFICENT TONIGHT."

Stretch smiled at the two. "you got this, howl."

Howl looked surprised, but pleased. He gently took Berry's hand to hold. "THANK YOU BOTH, I GREATLY APPRECIATE IT. AND YES, I WILL BE VERY MAGNIFICENT~ MAKE SURE TO WATCH."

Daemon beamed, so proud. He went over to take Howl's other hand. "we'll be back later, okay?"

Bery gave a tender squeeze to Howl's hand and a bright smile. When Howl let go of his hand, he hugged Daemon tight. "BE SAFE." Then he took a step back to the others.

Stretch rested his arm on Berry’s head. "we will watch and cheer you on."

"yeah, good luck you guys." Red gave a sassy two-fingered salute, finally pulling his left hand out of its pocket where it had been fidgeting.

"WE WILL. THANK YOU." Howl dipped his head. Daemon hugged Berry nice and tight. then ported himself and Howl away.

* * *

Red stretched and flopped more on the couch. "you were talking about baking?"

"YES." Berry squeezed his fingers nervously. "DAEMON AND HOWL LIKE SPICY FOOD... I WANT TO MAKE THEM A SNACK FOR THEIR RETURN..." He touched the bandana as a light dusting of magic coated his face. "I WAS THINKING A SPICE CAKE."

The pregnant monster chuckled at the dopey look on his brother's face. He was definitely crushing on the two skeletons.

"oh yeah? a spice cake, huh? i can help you make that." Red nodded and got up. He searched around for the remote and put on the TV, so they'd hear the news in the background when it started. Then he headed into the kitchen. "let's see... we'll need lots of ingredients for a spice cake... flour, baking soda, baking powder, brown sugar, eggs, buttermilk, oil, applesauce, vanilla, salt... and the spices. usually cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, and clove. and if you wanna add frosting, cream cheese matches best. that's butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar."

Berry shifted nervously for foot to foot. That seemed like a lot of ingredients. He worked the collar in his fingers, feeling the soft material and the intent that imbued to it. 'I CAN DO THIS,' he told himself.

~~Sully can't do anything right.~~

'WE CAN DO THIS,' Berry corrected, and the voice quieted down enough to ignore once again. "I'LL GO FIND THE SUPPLIES."

Stretch followed his older brother. "i'll help too, bro. this should be a lot of fun."

"it sounds like a lot, but honestly, it's just a matter of measuring them out and then putting them together in the right order, then popping them in the oven. cakes aren't too technical when it comes down to it," Red assured. "i won't steer ya wrong, okay? first we just find it all and get some bowls and utensils and stuff."

"dessert not worry yourself, bro." the tall skeleton reassured his brother. "i tried red's cakes and they are bake-tacular."

Berry giggled and nodded. "ARE YOU SAYING THIS WILL BE A PIECE OF CAKE?"

Red snorted. "flour nice of you, i think that'll make berry feel butter about the task." He found the bowls, utensils, and pan they'd need.

Berry smiled and looked for the spice rack. "WE BUTTER STOP BEFORE THIS GETS OUT OF HAND."

"okay, bro." Stretch dug in a few drawers. "i wouldn’t want you to get a tension headcake." He smiled and pulled out a little hand-held blow torch. "this should heat things up."

Red glanced over and his sockets went a little wide. "ahh, no, gimme that." He took it quickly and put it back. "no blowtorches, those are for advanced students only. we don't need to brulee for a spice cake, anyway."

Stretch sighed, disappointed, but went back to digging for stuff he might need.

With the three of them working together, they soon had all the components needed. "alright, great. so, before we get started with actually touching the ingredients, gotta wash our hands. then i think you two can handle measuring out the dry ingredients. use the measuring cups and be exact, ok? here." He pulled out his phone and pulled up the recipe, then tapped at the top ingredients. "the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices are what you're doing. don't pack the flour into the measuring cup tight, it'll mess with the ratio. think you can do that?"

Berry nodded. It was just like fixing a puzzle, that was one of the things he liked about baking. "YES, SIR." Stretch and him got to work.

He flushed. "ah, you don't have to call me sir, berry. just my name's fine." He worked on the wet ingredients in another bowl, but monitored the swap siblings just in case.

The tall monster opened the flour bag while his brother got the other stuff opened. Stretch picked up the bag and went to shake some flour into the cup. The flour went into the cup on the counter and on Berry. He blushed. "sorry about that bro." He dusted some off. "so, flour you feeling today, berry?"

Berry huffed. "THAT WASN'T FUNNY, BUT I'VE BEEN BATTER." He went to the sink and used a towel to clean up a bit. "BROTHER, MAYBE YOU SHOULD HAND ME THE TOOLS AND I'LL MEASURE."

Red looked over at the overflow of flour on the counter. "yeah, stretch. how exactly did you plan to measure without using the measuring cup?" His tone was mild, but there was some exasperation. "you gotta follow the directions. baking is science."

"there is a cup under there somewhere." He poked around in the flour. "i thought it would come out like cereal being shaken into a bowl." He shrugged.

Berry sighed. It wasn't Stretch's fault, they never really made food from scratch when he was younger. They found stuff, rations and fast food if they had some money. Nothing needed baking. It wasn't until he met Al and tried to cook with her that either of them really messed with ingredients (also a good share of fires), and it was mostly Berry that did. Stretch would play games or watch anime with Dyne. "IT'S FINE, BROTHER."

"well, flour's a lot looser and more powdery than cereal, so it's better to scoop it out with a spoon to avoid a mess," Red instructed. "it's ok, you just gotta be careful."

"i see that now." He took the other tools aside and waited for Berry to come back.

Berry came over with a clean dish towel and wiped the counter and found the full cup under the pile of flour. "LOOK" he held it up. "YOU GOT SOME IN THE CUP. GOOD JOB. I'LL JUST DUMP SOME OUT UNTIL IT THE RIGHT AMOUNT."

"that works. here, try to measure out the spices." He offered the tiny measuring spoons to stretch.

Said skeleton took the tiny spoons and had much more success measuring.

Berry got out a large bowl and worked on the flour, baking powder, baking soda.

"good job, you guys." Red was just whisking in the oil to the sugar and egg mixture. The buttermilk and applesauce and vanilla were about to go in. "make sure to mix it all together in the bowl, but gently."

Stretch hand over the spices, "here ya go, bro."

Berry focused some feelings into the mixture: Love, want, hope. Then he brought it over to Red.

Red finished mixing the wet ingredients. He was still only using his left hand; the right tucked away in its pocket. A floating red hand made up for the lack. "alright, now here's the trick to mixing wet and dry ingredients," he told them. "you make a well in the dry ingredients, just a nice dip in it." He gently did so. "then that's where you pour in the wet ingredients." He did that next with the mixture he'd made, while another magic hand grabbed the rubber spatula. "now the other important thing is to _not_ overmix it. see, when the acidic element, like buttermilk, hits the leavening agent, the baking soda and baking powder, gluten starts to develop, carbon dioxide builds up, and the cake becomes nice and fluffy. the eggs also help with this because egg whites have a protein that emulsifies the cake, or stops it from falling flat. but if you mix it too much, there's too much buildup, the air pockets collapse, and it comes out too tough and not as pleasant to chew through. it's ok if there are some lumps in the batter, so long as the ingredients are mixed." He folded the ingredients with the extra hand as he spoke, demonstrating. "now we put it in the cake pan and pop it in the oven. you wanna pour it?" He offered the bowl to Berry.

'This isn't too hard,' Berry thought. It was very neat learning how the cake became light and fluffy. Though, he wondered why Red didn't use this left hand. He was pulled from the thoughts at Reds' question. "YES PLEASE." The small skeleton nodded excitedly and moved the stool over and picked up the bowl to pour it in. "THANK YOU SO MUCH. "

Stretch watched. It was great seeing Berry so happy. He was coming out of his shell more than he ever did at home. It was bittersweet.

"no problem, blueberry buckle." Red smiled and let Berry pour the batter into the cake pan. The oven was already preheated, and he'd found an oven thermometer to stick on it and make sure it was accurate. Howl had the good stuff. When the batter was poured, he gripped the pan with his actual hand and a floating one. "now when you're baking a cake, you do wanna kinda just plop it on the counter once or twice to make sure there are no big air bubbles." He did so, then slid it into the oven. "that'll take a little over half an hour. when it's out and cooling, we'll make the cream cheese frosting, ok?"

Berry giggled at the nickname. "IT SOUNDS GREAT. THANK YOU, THIS WAS REALLY FUN."

"we ready to go watch some tv?" Stretch asked.

"you're welcome. baking _is_ fun." He set the timer and double-checked the thermometer, then dismissed the magic hands and rinsed off his real one to slip back into his pocket. "sure, yeah. i think howl's just about to start."

Stretch headed out into the living room.

Before following, Berry walked up to Red. He squeezed fingers and shifted from foot to foot. "MAY I ASK A PERSONAL QUESTION?"

Red paused on his way, rocking back on his feet. "oh, uh, sure?"

"I WAS JUST WONDERING..." The anxious monster played with his banana. "WHY DON'T YOU USE YOUR RIGHT HAND?"

"oh." He flushed a little, his left hand coming out to touch near the right wrist. "it's a long story, but, uh... it's kinda broken."

"OH." He was surprised and concerned. "DID YOU SET THE BONE AND WRAP IT? DAEMON CAN HELP HEAL IT WHEN HE GETS BACK. HE'S BEEN WORKING ON MINE." His hand went to his collarbone.

"oh, berry, it uh..." He pulled the right hand out, and it was covered in a black mitten. "it was broken a long time ago. i'll show you, but... just don't tell anyone else, okay?"

"OOOH." Now that he thought about it, Red kept his hand in his pocket practically all the time. "BUT MAYBE SOMEONE COULD FIX THE BONE IF WE ASKED FOR HELP." It would be painful to reset bones, but it could be done.

Red shook his head. "it can't be fixed. look..." He carefully tugged the mitten off. There was a plate on the back of it, metal and looking to be screwed into the metacarpals. It was cracked, one screw gone and another scraped to yell. He turned the hand over to show it palm-side. A large chunk of his thumb was missing, there was some damage on the middle finger, and the pointer finger was completely mangled. "i tried so hard to heal this, so did boss. it won't heal. i, uh, i almost died."

Berry reached out and traced his hand just barely over the damaged bone. 

"OH RED." His hand had a shake to it. "HAVE YOU TRIED TALKING TO DYNE? SHE MADE NAPSTABLOOK. MAYBE SHE COULD REPAIR THE BONE,” he said thoughtfully. "SOME PROSTHETIC AND RESIN? OR MAYBE..." He tried to puzzle some out options. "HOW THE HUMANS DO A SKIN TRANSPLANT? WE COULD TAKE SOME BONE AND MAKE IT GROW IN PLACE WITH MAGIC?"

Red flinched away from contact before Berry could touch it, tucking the mitten back on. "i don't wanna show anyone, they'll ask about the plate and i don't have answers. i've considered making a robotic replacement, but it's not a high priority." He looked away. "i showed you 'cause you know what it's like to be experimented on..."

‘RED TOO... HE WAS EXPERIMENTED ON TOO?’ One of Berry's hands went to his chest and the other to his eye. "I DO.... I WON'T TELL, BUT I THINK IT WOULD HELP." He knew how it felt not being ready to talk about stuff. But talking was helping him. ‘I’M SAFE NOW. HE’S NOT HERE. HE CAN’T HURT ME AGAIN.’ They were trying to help fix him. "EVERYONE IS TRYING THEIR BEST FOR ME. I'M SURE THEY WOULD HELP YOU TOO, ONCE YOU'RE READY TO TALK…” 

Red slid the hand back into its pocket. "i dunno... i told sansy, and of course my bro knows, but... it's hard to talk about. i mean, i get nightmares' n' stuff..." 

“RED?” Berry asked. “HOW DID YOU KNOW ABOUT ME? ABOUT MY TREATMENTS?”

Red sighed. "well, um... boss got a hold of your file from the sanitarium. not for long, took pictures. he didn't know what a lot of the data meant, so he asked me. i know what gaster was trying to do to you."

Slight tremors went through Berry and fear gripped his soul. "he...he went there?" Berry noticed he was talking in lowercase. He took a few deep breaths. "WHY?"

"him and daemon, yeah. the day after, uh, what happened to you. uh, did you know gaster's plans?"

Berry hugged himself. Two of his family had gone there... The doctor didn’t like an outsider coming in and upsetting his tests. They could have been hurt very badly.

He looked at Red. Question... Red asked a question. "HE... HE WANTED TO FIND A CURE FOR OMEGAS. THAT HAD BEEN WHAT I ASSUMED." He remembered the day they called him untrainable and incurable. "THE TREATMENTS DIDN'T WORK. I HAD NO ONE TO CLAIM ME. HE WAS USING ME TO FIND A CURE. THAT'S THE FATE OF ALL UNCLAIMED.”

"he's a liar." Red frowned. "i triple-checked the data. he was putting determination in you to try and strengthen your body. maybe even extend your life. by some miracle, you didn't melt..."

Berry was so confused. The horror of that day was forever stuck in the darkness of his mind. The feel of his bones becoming soft and pliable as he pulled on his straps that held him on the examination table, his bones bending like wet noodles. His magic sweat sticky on his bones. Hands grabbing at him and pulling him like taffy as they try to pull away, covered in magic and liquid bones. "MELTING.... I THINK I STARTED TO ONCE." He leaned against the cabinet. He had thought it was a fever dream from the experiment. His breath was speeding up. His bones knocked loudly.

"that's what the paper said, yeah. but the dosage was knocked back and you actually stabilized. that's not happened before, as far as i know. honestly, he probably got really lucky. but anyway, that's not the worst part. he was putting his own magic into you too. with a weird chemical cocktail put in to help him... control it outside his body. the results look pretty inconclusive for what he wanted it to be, but i doubt there were _no_ effects."

Berry slid down the cabinets. "DR. GASTER'S MAGIC IN ME..." He never thought he could feel more dirty and used then he did as being a Sully. He was wrong. Being an experiment was worse. "HE'S IN MY MAGIC." His hands went to his head. "HE'S IN MY HEAD." There was no healing. There was no getting better. The voice would always be there. There was no fighting it. Liquid sadness cascaded down the poor skeleton's face.

"oh, fuck." Red looked alarmed as Berry slid down to the floor and started crying. "no, no, don't cry, i'm sorry." He knelt down too. "it's gonna be okay, i mean, it's over, right? we're not gonna let him touch you again, it'll be okay."

"HE’S INSIDE ME." He said through tears. Gripping his head.

"no no, it's just his magic! it's not- you're okay, berry, c'mon, it's okay, don't freak out." It looked like Red was crying too. "i'm sorry."

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND. I HEAR HIM." He wiped at his face. "HE TELLS ME I'M BAD. A DIRTY LITTLE TEMPTRESS. I NEED TO LEARN MY PLACE. WHEN I TALK BACK, IT GETS WORSE. HE GETS LOUD. HE MAKES ME REMEMBER MY LESSONS."

"that sounds awful... i get it, kinda, really. the nightmares are just... i used to get them so much. i still get them, way more than i'd like. it's awful, and it's why i tried to cut this _damn_ thing off my hand..." Red wiped at his own sockets. "but i almost killed myself doing it. i was so close to dying. you can't let it get to you like that, like i did."

Berry looked to Red and reached out for a hug. Red hugged him, nice and tight, tearing up again.

"i'm so sorry, berry. i'm gonna help you too. i'm not super physically strong but i'm making something for you."

"YOU'RE REALLY SMART THOUGH.'' Berry hugged back tight, and he calmed a bit. "YOU ARE? WHAT ARE YOU MAKING?"

"thanks, that's like my only great quality..." He chuckled ruefully. "it's like a panic button... when you need to, you can use it to instantly get home, like if you took a shortcut."

"YOU’RE SMART, NICE, AND KIND, RED." He thought about that. It would have been perfect a few days ago. "WOW... THAT WILL BE NICE TO HAVE. THANK YOU."

"thanks..." He smiled a little. "yeah, i only just started on it yesterday, so it's nowhere near done yet. but, hopefully by the end of the week, it'll be done. so you can go to your next cooking class, yeah?"

"THANKS." Berry wasn't sure if he was going anymore, but having an escape would make it easier to go.

"yeah, don't mention it." Red pulled Berry back off the floor. "we're all here to help you, berry."

Berry let Red pull him up. "THANK YOU." He held Red tightly. "WE ARE HERE FOR YOU TOO. IF YOU WANT TO TALK."

"i appreciate it. maybe someday..." Red looked over at Stretch and let go, wiping his sockets again.

Stretch peeked his head in, "hey guys, it started..." He looked at them hugging and the evidence of tears. "are you okay? what's happened?"

"yeah, sorry, we were, uh, talking about emotions' n' stuff. we're coming."

Berry nodded and held Red's hand back into the living room, where Stretch scooped him up and carried him to the couch to watch the speech.


	11. I Won't Trust Myself Once I Hear Your Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a goat gets insulted and a journal gets dropped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all you lovely people! Thank you for coming to read our story. Be sure to leave a kudos and comment! It warms our heart on these cold winter nights. We love to know what you think and your speculation on what will happen next.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> I also made some pics!  
> https://twitter.com/Diyami1/status/1339861777241149440

The Queen of the Fells had the idea. She had her Alphys put a bug in the room before the united council invited the other queen. It was tiny, in a small corner and out of sight. Then, when that was done, they called in ‘Queen Toriel.’ Tori contemplated legally changing her name while they waited.

The Queen of Underswap was not in a good mood when she arrived. She gripped her hands tightly to keep them from shaking in rage. The pesky skeletons were ruining Underswap reputation. That cursed Sully and its uncontrollable omega scents and actions. Then Howl, the ex-captain, pulled a political stunt to keep his little whore. It reminded her of her ungrateful oaf of a husband. The royals must have heard about the filthy little slut's actions. She was determined to find a way around this damn law. She contemplated what to tell the others as she entered the conference room of the embassy.

"Greetings," she told the others as she came to take her seat.

Asgore nodded to her. "Thank you for coming to our summons. We have heard very harrowing news about Underswap and some laws."

"Indeed." Tori's voice was icy. "We have heard of this Sully law... It's very troubling. So many monsters called 'Sully.'"

Gore was quiet, gnawing on one claw. He'd had a blunt in between these meetings, but honestly, the one wasn't enough. Not for this.

"Only monsters who cannot control themselves and force others to use them are deemed Sully," The Queen replied. "Do not worry, I will have the Sully taken off the streets soon enough. It will receive better training this time. Doctor Gaster has informed me this one's training had not taken well. When it had failed, Dr. Gaster applied a new experimental treatment that wasn't completed before it was released last time. Once it is returned to him, the newest treatments can be applied and your citizens will be safe."

Tori tightened her paws against each other. "Where do you intend to put them?"

Asgore listened in shock. He had to keep his temper in check, they needed details for a warrant. "And what are these treatments?"

Underswap’s Queen’s eyes narrowed. She ignored Asgore, and turned to the other Queen, "Them? Have there been reports of more Sully I am unaware of?"

"No, not at all. I simply don't feel comfortable using 'it.'"

Torial looked a little put off by that. She then turned to Asgore. "The Sully will be kept in custody and monitored as it receives its rehabilitation in a secured location. There will be no worry of it inflicting itself on and corrupting any more citizens." The Queen of Underswap turned to look at Gore. She gave the cowering king a look of contempt. "If you would kindly instruct your ex-captain to turn over the _Underswap fugitive,_ this matter would be cleared up faster."

Gore cringed when he was looked at, his claws digging into his knees. "Yes, well... That is... Howl's charge is my citizen now..."

"Let me be clearer," Tori said, her voice becoming sharp. "I want to know exactly where you intend to put this so-called fugitive. Is your intention to drag him all the way back down to the underground, where your Sanitarium is?"

"The location of my Sanitarium is no concern of yours," the Queen of Underswap answered in an equally sharp tone.

Asgore stepped in. "Well, now it is, as this case is involving multiple races. As Queen of Underswap, I'm sure you want what is best for your people."

"Perhaps we can _assist,"_ Tori agreed, her voice becoming a purr. "Clearly, your method didn't work. Why bash your head against a wall? Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is, after all, the definition of insanity."

Gore shuddered at the tone of voice, sinking into his seat.

The Queen looked to Tori. She knew that sweet tone very well. It was one she had been known to use in the past. "You would do well to put your false sweetness back. As for the method, Doctor Gaster has many updated treatments. The success rate of rehabilitation for Sully has increased. His lab is now stocked with new surface technology which has aided him well."

"And what do these methods include?" She dropped the false pretense, and Gore sighed.

"Every Sully," she said with a look of disgust, "has basic treatments: Drug therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and aversion therapy to name a few." She said it like it was no big deal. "Some difficult ones have more specialized treatment plans as the Doctor sees fit."

Asgore asked, "so you would say that Doctor Gaster watches over this program 24/7?"

"Do you ever visit?" Tori added.

"Yes, the doctor does." She made a face at the idea of visiting and being around all the Sully. "Rarely. My time, much like your own, is limited. I have more imported things to attend to, but I receive reports."

"Have you ever considered the possibility that Dr. Gaster might do things in his lab you wouldn't approve of because you don't go visit?" Tori went on.

"No," she said, looking confused. "Dr. Gaster has always conducted himself and the programs perfectly. Yes, some incurable or unwanted are kept there to keep monsterkind safe from them. Dr. Gaster has implanted a program for them to earn their keep by being helpful in looking for cures that will help all of monsterkind. It's the least they can do to earn room and board. After all, they are draining the resources from the rest of monsterkind."

"So you think. But you have no proof. You're simply trusting him to carry out exactly what you want without following up,” Tori chided. “An irresponsible call for a leader."

"There has been no need to follow up, as the program has been running perfectly,” the Underswap Queen defended. “After a Sully has been through treatment, there is a very low chance of it tempting again."

Asgore nodded, "Then you wouldn't mind us all taking a tour of the Sanitarium and Dr. Gaster's lab? I assume they are at the same place."

"So Asgore, you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. If I agree to the tour," the Queen looked to Gore, "he will make Howl turn over the sully?"

Tori opened her mouth to say something more, but before she could, Gore snarled, slamming his hands down on the table.

"How about instead of talking about an injured man like he's _nothing,_ you think long and hard about why your husband decided to fuck someone less cold and bitchy?"

The Queen's eye flared red as her temper ignited. "You know what, you insolent goat?" She stood up. "You are no-"

Asgore cut her off. "I believe this meeting is over!"

She turned her ball-shriveling glare to him. "You will do well to stay away from my lab," she said coldly and stomped out of the room.

Tori put a hand to her forehead, then glared at Gore. The scraggly goat sat back down, his hands trembling, and lit up a joint with some fumbling.

"Well this could have been better,” Asgore sighed. "We at least know the lab and Sanatorium are the same place."

"Yes... That is true.” Tori said. “We can pull the records of the lab and get the search warrant that way." 

Asgore nodded. "I'll get Alphys to find the address. Undyne can lead the search."

"Yes, good idea." She wrinkled her nose at the smell of Gore's drugs. "Let us depart for now, then."

"Very well." He looked between both rulers. "I will let you know when we are ready to execute the search warrant."

"Yes, please do." She stood and departed from the room before she could snap at the Fellswap ruler.

Asgore waited until Tori was gone to speak again. "Gore, I'll take you home. Let's go."

He grumbled but got to his feet. "Fine... You want a smoke?"

"No thanks." He opened the door for them.

"Stiff lips, all of you."

* * *

Red sat down nearby Berry and watched the screen. Howl was just starting his speech, standing in front of a podium and a few dozen reporters. Daemon was standing proudly by his side as a bodyguard, his chin lifted so his collar was obvious.

"FOR THE FUTURE OF ALL OF OUR RACES, COOPERATION AND UNDERSTANDING ARE THE MOST VITAL. IN THIS VEIN, THERE MUST BE COOPERATION AND UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE DIFFERENT MONSTER CULTURES AS WELL. THERE IS A TERRIBLE RIFT IN OUR CULTURES THAT MUST BE REMEDIED. SPECIFICALLY, THIS RIFT IS BETWEEN THE UNDERSWAP CULTURE AND THE REST OF US, WITH A TRULY ASTONISHING, AND EVEN TERRIFYING, VIEW ON THE OMEGA POPULATION."

He described the Sully law and how a personal acquaintance had been mistreated by it, impressively garnering sympathy and stoking outrage at the law. By the end of his speech, the reporters were clamoring with questions, which he graciously answered.

Berry felt detached from his body a bit as he listened to Howl talk about the Sanitarium, and doctor Gaster’s voice continued to berate him. His mind was trying to take him back there. He tried to pay attention, but his mind kept slipping to the fact they corrupted his magic. Gaster’s magic was mixed with his. The voice was part of Gaster. Questions plagued his mind. 'Why? Why did he do it? Why me?'

The more he dwelled on his agony, the louder the voice was getting. He felt crushed. Cursed. He wanted to give in and not feel. Not think. It was never going away, and he was tired. He had been tired for a long time. Right now, he felt as tired as he had been at the Sanitarium. Just a lifeless husk that existed. The same feeling he had had when he had been ready to give up after the last treatment had failed… when he almost died. 

Stretch’s arm wrapped around him, encasing him in the sweet honey smell. Memories of Stretch saving him filled his mind. Being taken to his brother’s home. Being loved and wanted. He wasn’t an experiment. Berry snuggled into his brother and reveled in the feeling of being cherished and protected.

The voice quieted as he remembered that.

"it's going to be okay. we don't need to watch the questions if you don't want to,” Stretch assured.

Red looked over from his spot on the couch, coming closer so he could be an inviting snuggle buddy too. "i think the cake's just about to beep. we could go start on the frosting, yeah?"

"IN A FEW MINUTES." Berry squeezed the soft material of his bandana. Then he tapped the space next to him, welcoming Red. "I COULD USE SOME CUDDLES."

Stretch pet Berry's head. "we’ll give you all the cuddles you want."

"alright, when it beeps, then." Red came closer and snuggled up.

Berry tried to ignore the voice as Red cuddled. His brothers surrounded him. 'THEY WILL NEVER HURT ME. THEY WON’T BE TEMPTED. THEY ARE MY FAMILY. THEY LOVE ME. THEY’RE SAFE.'

Stretch looked at Berry gently while projecting love and safety.

"you're alright, berry. we're here." Red tried to project comfort and friendliness and contentment.

Berry tried to focus on the positive feelings from his brothers. He told himself, 'IT'S GOING TO BE OKAY. I DEALT WITH THE VOICE FOR YEARS ALREADY. KNOWING WHO IT IS DOESN'T CHANGE THAT FACT.' 

~~Learn your place, Sully.~~

It just made him feel violated. 'I SHOULD BE USED TO THAT.'

"berry." Stretch pet his head, making him rest it against him. "you're going to be just fine. we got ya."

"it's alright, really." Red kept trying to comfort him too.

The reporters were asking Howl details about the Sanitarium and what happened to monsters there. He was calm and collected as he explained that, without a warrant to check the place out, he only knew of what the one underground was like. Still garnering sympathy while carefully avoiding any careless statements that proved they'd already investigated.

The oven beeped, and Red reluctantly got up. "the cake’s gotta cool. let's go make the frosting, ok?"

"come on, bro. it will be fun." Stretch nudged Berry.

Berry blinked a few times, slowly finding the way out of his own head.

"OKAY." He didn't want to hear any more of the conference. The small bits he caught were too much. He got up and leaned on Stretch as they walked to the kitchen.

Red pulled the cake out of the oven and set it on a cooling rack. "alright, so for the frosting, we need cream cheese, butter, vanilla, sugar, and salt. now, when you make baked goods, you want stuff like butter and cream cheese to be room temperature usually. that way they're already soft and they're easy to mix." He set out the stuff they needed. "you two measure the salt, vanilla, and butter. i'll make cream cheese and sugar."

Stretch brought Berry up to the sink. "come on, we got this," he turned the water on. "let's wash up and get started. Just imagine how happy daemon and howl will be trying this masterpiece."

The melancholy slipped a bit with Red's and Stretch's prodding. "ALRIGHT." He washed his hands. The feeling of the warm water following over his hands helped ground him. "DO I MIX THESE OR JUST PUT THEM ALL IN THE BOWL?" he asked Red.

"keep them separate for now. the order in which they go in is important." He sifted sugar carefully. "this is how you sift sugar. it makes it lighter, so it's more accurate how much you're using." When that was done, he set up the mixer. "okay, cream cheese and butter first. go ahead and put them in the mixing bowl."

Berry unwrapped the ingredients and put them in the bowl. He turned to Red for more instructions. Stretch finished washing his hands and came over.

"now we stir..." He turned on the mixer at medium. "give it a minute or two to get smooth... and now we add in the sugar, then vanilla, then salt." He let Berry pour the correct amounts, manning the mixer.

Berry concentrated on not dropping the ingredients as he gave the bowl a little shake to get the sugar to fall out. The magic of watching the ingredients change into a sweet frosting was lifting his spirits. He wanted to transform like them.

He turned to Red, and a small smile bloomed.

Stretch took a spoon and quickly dipped it into the bowl, grabbing some frosting and tasting it. "delicious."

Red gently smacked Stretch's hand away with a tut. "it's not done yet, buddy. now we mix it on high for another couple of minutes." He turned up the mixer. _"then_ it'll be done." He smiled back at Berry.

Berry smiled at the compliment and gave a little giggle as Red tutted at his brother. He asked Red, "DO WE PIPE IT ON OR SPREAD IT?"

Stretch chuckled. "frosting is the best part."

"it can be, yeah! i'll let ya lick the mixer paddle, ok?" Stretch was kinda cute, in that way that reminded Red he was very close personality-wise to Vex, when Vex was still young, still excited about things and willing to be visibly happy and carefree. Stretch allowed himself to be childish.

He finished mixing and turned off the machine. "for a cake like this, you just spread it. but you have to be careful to do it evenly. so, we can choose to level the cake if you want. that means cutting across the top to make it all flat instead of domed. that's up to you."

"you’re the best brother-in-law." Stretch smiled excitedly for the sweet treat. The souling fluttered happily too.

Berry looked at the cake with a critical eye. It was a delicate shape, but he thought, ‘WOULD THEY THINK THE SHAPE CLUMSY?’ He only wanted to give Howl and Daemon the best. “I WANT TO MAKE IT NICE AND STRAIGHT.”

"alright. so we'll just cut off the domed part. we can just eat it. it'll help cool the rest, too. you can't put frosting on a cake until it's cool, otherwise you'll just make a mess."

Berry didn't want it to be messy. He wanted to make something _they_ would be proud of. "I THINK I SAW A LEVELING TOOL IN A DRAWER. I SAW THEM ON THE COOKING SHOWS." He dug in the drawers and pulled out a large saw-looking tool. "THAT’S WHAT THIS IS FOR RIGHT?"

Stretch snuck over and tried to pull the paddle off. When it didn't come off, he moved the bowl and used his finger to gather the frosting. His little souling swam excitedly in the pregnant monster’s middle. He patted his belly and licked his fingers. "it’s coming, kiddo."

"well, i just use a knife, but that'll work too." He again smacked Stretch's hand away. "be _patient,_ stretch, jeez. i told you you can lick the paddle, just hang on."

Stretch pulled his hand back. "ah, but the baby wants it."

Berry thought for a minute. "I'M NOT SURE IF I CAN GET IT STRAIGHT WITH A KNIFE. I WANT IT PERFECT FOR THEM."

"the baby can wait too. it's part vex, it can be patient." He helped Berry with leveling the cake, then undid the mixer and pulled off the mixer paddle. "here, ya rascal." He gave it to Stretch. "take the trimmings too."

Stretch made puppy dog eyes at Red, but waited. The baby was his ace in the hole, it sucked that it didn't work with Red. But once Red rewarded his patience and offered the trimming, he sat that table with his prize. "thank you. kiddo has been wanting this all night."

Berry giggled at his brother's antics. He leveled the cake. The warm feeling of home and family was coming back, and the voice was just a quiet muttering he could ignore.

Red winked at Blue. The domed bits of cake and the paddle of frosting should keep Stretch busy. "seems like the cake's nice and cool, so let's start frosting it. you gotta be careful, a little at a time, keeping it an equal amount across the whole thing, ok? no thicker bits."

The smaller skeleton put a little frosting on the cake. He was careful, like when he worked on the triggers of a trap. Slow and studied, he smoothed the frosting out.

"this has to be nirvana. dude, its soooooo goood." Stretch nommed on the cake.

Red watched Blue work, pleased. "yeah, you're doing great! good job." He glanced over at Stretch. "if you think that's nirvana, you should try a honey strawberry cake."

"next game night, we are expecting it." He patted his belly where the souling was swimming happily. "seriously, how come you haven't been baking for us?"

Berry smiled happily at the praise. "THANK YOU. YOU’RE A GREAT TEACHER, RED." He looked at the cake, very pleased and proud of it. His brother knew his sweets. If he said it was great, then it had to be.

The Fell skeleton flushed a little. "well, thanks. eh, i've been pretty busy with that damn thesis... honestly, i haven't been baking as much as i used to underground. but i'll start baking for the game nights, sure."

"IF IT’S NOT TOO MUCH TROUBLE." Berry gripped his bandana and asked hopefully, "I WOULD LIKE TO BAKE WITH YOU?" There was a lot he could learn from his brother-in-law.

"it sounds like a plan. berry can learn to bake and we get to eat." Stretch rubbed his belly and winked at them.

"well, you'd have to get over to my place, but sure." Red nodded. "i can teach you lots of baking stuff. just don't slack on the cooking lessons, okay?"

Berry nodded back. "OF COURSE, I’LL DO MY BEST. AS FOR GETTING TO YOUR PLACE, THAT SHOULDN'T BE A PROBLEM. I CAN ASK DAEMON TO DROP ME OFF OR TAKE THE BUS. DO YOU HAVE A STOP NEAR YOUR PLACE?"

Stretch reminded him, "bro, you're not to go places alone right now. if daemon can't take you, someone will come get you."

"ah, yeah, better to let daemon take you, or i might pick you up. we'll see." He nodded. "we wanna make sure you're safe and all." He cleaned up all the stuff they'd used to make the cake.

Berry went to the sink and filled it with warm soapy water. He brought the frosting bowl over. "BROTHER," he asked, "CAN YOU PLEASE BRING THE PADDLE OVER?" He did dishes while Red cleaned the counters and mixer.

Stretch dusted off the crumbs from his clothes and brought over his stuff.

"thanks. so, is the baby sated?" Red teased, patting gently at the baby bump.

"yep they're thrilled. thanks, bros."

Berry wiped off his hands, then dried and put the dishes away. "ANYTHING FOR THE BABY," Berry teased.

"no need to thank me, i'm gonna spoil my little nibbling rotten. you hear that, lil' rascal? uncle red's gonna get you the _best_ stuff. you're gonna love me more than your stuffy father, aren't cha? bet you'll say my name before his." He was cooing over the bump.

Stretch chuckled. "we wouldn't hear the end of it."

Berry finished putting away the dishes. "THE BABYBONES WILL BE VERY LOVED AND TAKEN CARE OF. JUST LIKE YOU, BROTHER."

"hehehe. of course they will be. so has vex offered names yet? twenty g says he's suggested sports car names."

"he sure has: viper, mustang, camaro, corvette, mercedes, ferrari, and porsche."

Berry liked Mercedes and Porsha best, personally. "DO YOU LIKE ANY OF THEM?"

Red laughed aloud. "are you gonna actually let him name your kid after a car? he'd be so pleased."

"it's not like my ideas were much better: candy, cookie, honey, lolly, or maple. who knows? we might just put all the names in a hat and see what gets pulled."

"A DRAWING IS NOT A GOOD WAY TO NAME A CHILD." Berry frowned. "IT SHOULD HAVE A MEANING BEHIND CHOOSING IT."

"oh my god." Red put a hand to his forehead. "you wanna name your kid after junk food? you're both hopeless."

"i can’t help it, if my kid is sweet." He smiled.

"YOU'RE JUST THINKING ABOUT PUN-ABLITIY OF YOUR CHILD." Berry smacked his forehead. "WHERE DID I GO WRONG?"

Red huffed. "well, if you're both gonna be ridiculous, you should at least compromise! maybe there's a sports car name that's also a sweet..."

"hmmmm." He thought that could work. "i'll ask vex about it."

Berry nodded in agreement. "THAT WOULD HAVE MEANING. THEY WOULD BE THINGS YOU BOTH LOVE."

"yeah, you do that. compromises are good." He finished cleaning up the kitchen and checked the time. "i wonder if they'll be back soon..."

Berry sat at the table. "COMPROMISES ARE GOOD." He looked at the clock. "I HOPE THEY ARE OKAY."

"they'll have to deal with reports and find a quiet place to ‘port back. i'm sure it won't be too much longer."

Red checked the time too, then looked back out at the TV. "well, they're not on the air anymore. so yeah, i'm sure it'll be soon."

* * *

Cory and Tal wore normal street clothes today. They were outside the news building as the speech wrapped up. The Queen had told Gaster about the impending trial. The good Doctor had sent them to fetch the little Blueberry (can't have a trial without the star witness), but no one had been at the house when they went. Then they saw the press conference. 

"Bet these two know where that Sully is. They're probably hiding him," Cory told Tal.

Tal looked around the corner of the alley they were waiting at. "Maybe Prat will find our missing Sully in one of the rooms?"

Cory looked off towards the doors. "If not, follow them back to their house."

* * *

Prat was sneaking in the shadows of the halls. He hadn't found Berry waiting in any of the rooms around the press conference. Now he was watching the two newest skeletons exit into the backstage. He remembered the taller one had been in the bar, so he kept his distance.

Daemon was beaming at Howl. "you did so great, master!"

"NATURALLY. WE HAVE A FEW WEEKS UNTIL THE ACTUAL TRIAL, BUT THIS IS A GOOD START. I WILL PRESS FOR A PROPER SEARCH OF THE SANITARIUM NEXT."

"mhm, good idea. home, then?"

"YES."

Howl clipped the leash back on and took hold of the handle, and they were gone in a blip of magic.

Prat blinked as he stared at the empty space. He made his way back to the others. The Doctor would be mad they didn't have the Sully, but they could prepare for the search.

* * *

Howl and Daemon arrived back in their living room. Howl let go and began to remove his gloves. He paused at the smell in the air. "...BERRY?"

"sup." Red was plopped on the couch next to Stretch, holding up his phone to the belly to play the baby rock music.

Stretch had his shirt pulled up so Red and Berry could see the souling’s light. It was swinging around full of energy (probably on a sugar high), seeming happy with the music. "Hiya."

Berry looked up at the Howl and Daemon. "WELCOME HOME.” His two brothers had been keeping his mind too busy with the baby to think about his troubles. He was feeling safe and happy with his family. It had a wonderful effect of allowing him to ignore the voice. A small dusting of blue magic tinted his face as he got up. "WE MADE A TREAT FOR MY HEROES."

"THANK YOU." Howl dipped his head. "IS THAT WHAT I SMELL? YOU MADE SOMETHING?"

"oh yeah, i helped him bake," Red said cheerfully, pausing the music. "he did fantastic!"

"I SEE. THAT'S VERY ADMIRABLE. I CAN'T WAIT TO TRY IT."

"yeah, that's great, berry!" Daemon said, beaming. "you'll have some too, right?"

"I MADE IT FOR YOU THOUGH..." Berry hadn't been expecting Daemon to say that. He looked at Daemon's hopeful face. "OKAY." He hesitated, then said, "WE CAN SHARE A PIECE?"

Stretch pulled down his shirt and smiled at Berry.

"there's more than enough for everyone," Red assured.

"YES, I'M SURE IT'LL BE FINE IF EVERYONE HAS A PIECE. SHOW ME WHAT YOU'VE MADE?"

"go ahead. show them, bro." Stretch said as he got up. "i'll get some plates." He patted Berry on the head as he passed by.

Berry nodded and walked them into the dinning room where the cake was sitting on the table. "IT'S A SPICE CAKE. I NOTICED YOU BOTH LIKE SPICE. I HOPE IT WILL MEET YOUR STANDARDS.”

"A SPICE CAKE? THAT'S VERY THOUGHTFUL. I'M SURE IT WILL." Howl looked pleased.

"it's really great that you did this for us!" Daemon agreed.

Red got up and followed along. Stretch came out with some plates and forks and sat them down in front of Berry. "here ya go, bro."

Berry's soul fluttered at Howl's and Daemon's replies. He felt useful and wanted. "IT’S NO PROBLEM. THANK YOU BOTH FOR HELPING ME," he said as he cut a piece of the cake and handed them out. Stretch’s piece was a little bigger."YOU’RE EATING FOR TWO," he teased his brother.

He took a small piece for himself; after all, this food was for his family.

Red looked at everyone's pieces. Then he took Stretch's plate and Blue's plate and switched them.

"baby already had cake," he declared. "you eat the big piece."

Daemon giggled quietly. "please, berry?"

Stretch put his hand on Berry. "It's okay bro. This is more than enough. You eat up."

Berry couldn't argue that. Stretch did have a lot of cake earlier, but he couldn't help to think, 'THEY DESERVE IT MUCH MORE THAN ME.'

He looked at Daemon when he said please and looked so cute. "OKAY."

"thanks!" Daemon beamed and dug into his own piece. Howl delicately cut a forkful of his own and tried it. He made a pleased noise.

"IT'S DELICIOUS, BERRY. WELL DONE."

'HE REALLY LIKES IT!' Berry thought he died and went to heaven as Howl made that sound. "THANK YOU!" 

He picked up his own fork, took a bite and mirrored the sound. He looked down at the cake in shock. 'WE MADE THAT?' It was warm and spicy with a hint of love and family. He looked around at everyone eating and felt pride in their work seeing their smiling face. 'WE MADE THIS.' He ate the whole slice.

Stretch watched the others getting Berry to eat more. It made him so happy seeing them taking care of his brother.

After they had all finished their cake, Red gave Berry a hug. "i'll take your bro home. see you at the next game night, yeah? you did great tonight."

Berry gave Red a gentle squeeze, "THANK YOU FOR TEACHING ME."

"you're welcome, blueberry crumble." He rubbed the shorter skeleton's skull fondly.

Stretch gave Berry a hug next. "i love ya, bro. always have and always will." 

Berry tenderly embraced him. "I LOVE YOU TOO, BROTHER."

Then Stretch took Red’s hand. "ready to go."

"bye, guys." A wave to the Fellswaps before Red ported himself and Stretch away.

Berry turned Daemon and Howl, taking their hands into his. "HOW WAS THE END?" He looked away as he admitted, "WE DIDN'T WATCH YOU ANSWER THE QUESTIONS."

Daemon happily squeezed Berry's hand, lifting it to nuzzle. Howl only held on, managing not to twitch from the suddenness.

"PLEASE WARN ME BEFORE TAKING MY HAND," he requested. "IT WENT WELL, I THINK. PEOPLE ARE VERY INDIGNANT ON YOUR BEHALF. I HAD TO CAUTION AGAINST A VIOLENT REACTION. WITH ANY LUCK, PEOPLE WILL LISTEN."

"I'M SORRY," Berry looked to Howl, a little scared that he had messed this up. Berry was too greedy with his need to be close to them. He loosened his grip so Howl could pull away. The voice fed on that insecurity telling him loudly, ~~needy whore, making others unclean with your touch…~~ "I HOPE THEY DO. I DON'T WANT PEOPLE BEING HURT BECAUSE OF ME…”

"IT'S ALRIGHT. I'M JUST LETTING YOU KNOW FOR NEXT TIME." He squeezed gently, trying to reassure the timid skeleton.

"yeah, you're okay." Daemon nuzzled his hand again. "we don't want that either."

"YES, THAT WOULD GO AGAINST EVERYTHING WE'RE TRYING TO DO. THERE SHOULD BE PEACE HERE ON THE SURFACE."

"ALRIGHT.” When Howl squeezed his hand and didn't let go, Berry's soul skipped a beat. He squeezed back, a small smile on his face. "YEAH.” A tired yawn escaped Berry as he leaned a little on Daemon. It had been a long, emotional day. The short skeleton moved his hand to caress Daemon's face, trying to reassure him he was okay. "I JUST WANT EVERYONE TO BE HAPPY AND OKAY."

"A NOBLE CAUSE."

"mhm, but first, focus on you being happy and okay," Daemon said, patting the hand on his face. "did you write in your journal?"

Berry looked guilty. "I WANT TO BE..." But he wasn't sure he could ever be happy and okay fully. "NO," he answered. He pulled away. "I SHOULD DO THAT."

"YOU CAN. YOU JUST HAVE TO GET THERE." Howl settled on the couch and gathered up his knitting to resume. "YOU GO AHEAD AND DO THAT, THEN. IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO DO WHAT THE THERAPIST SAYS."

"OKAY." Berry went to his room and closed the door. He went to his bag and took out one of his pencils. Then he took the journal and sat on the floor, leaning against the nightstand, for a long time while trying to get his thoughts in order. 

Berry wrote about his day. His handwriting got more shaky as he wrote about the voice being the doctor's. He wiped tears from his eyelights. "I DON'T KNOW HOW IT WILL EVER GO AWAY. WHATEVER HE DID... I'M NOT NORMAL. THE VOICE IS A SIDE EFFECT OF HIS MAGIC, BUT WHY DOES IT YELL AT ME?" He talked about Daemon and Howl. "I REALLY, REALLY LIKE THEM," he admitted to his book. "I'M IN LOVE WITH THEM."

 ~~Dirty whore!~~ Berry winced and dropped his pencil. Love was bad. "I WANT THEM, THAT'S BAD…" He thought about what Ms. Candy, Howl, and Daemon had told him: That sully was a lie. "BUT IF THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS SULLY.... MAYBE IT’S OKAY..."

~~DIRTY! FILTHY! DISGUSTING! SULLY!~~

He dropped the book to grab his head. It hurt, the voice was so loud that he couldn't think of anything but it.

"I'M SORRY," he hissed, "I'M BAD... PLEASE STOP..."

The voice quieted down so he could think again. He wrapped his arms around himself. "I CAN'T BE NORMAL..." He cried quietly for a while until he was able to get up and collect the items and put them away. He pulled his blanket out and wrapped it around himself trying to find some comfort. He didn't touch the bed. He didn't want the voice yelling again. He wanted to be greedy and call out for Daemon and Howl. 'THEY DESERVE BETTER THAN ME,' he told himself. The more he berated himself, the quieter it was. He laid in the cold, depressing haze.

His mind wandered as he looked around the room. This was almost the same spot he’d been sitting with Daemon. It made him think of how the taller skeleton quieted the voice and made everything better. His warm, safe, loving embrace, that pull that was between them... The kiss he wanted to give Daemon.

~~-SLUT! YOU DESERVE PUNISHMENT! SULLY-~~

Dark memories bubbled to the surface, killing the warm reminiscence, and overflowed into tears streaming down his face. "DAEMON!"

The taller brother appeared in the room immediately, sockets wide in alarm. "berry??" His first thought was there might've been someone attacking, but no, this was the surface, they didn't get attacked here. And Berry was crying miserably, bundled up in that thin blanket and looking so defeated. Daemon's soul throbbed. He sat down and pulled Berry into a tight hug, shaking a little. "it's okay, i'm here. i'll protect you, berry."

Berry gripped him tightly as he cried. "I'M SORRY,” he mumbled.

"sorry for what, honey?" He gently rubbed at Berry's skull. "you did nothing bad. i promise."

It came tumbling out. "I'M BAD." Berry cuddled deeper into Demon's chest. "THE DOCTOR... THE VOICE IS RIGHT, I DESERVE PUNISHMENT FOR INFLICTING MYSELF ON YOU... I WANT TO GET BETTER. I WANT TO BE GOOD, BUT I CANNOT BE NORMAL. I'M BROKEN. I'M BAD. I'M SORRY."

"you're not bad," he said. His voice was firm but kind. "you're so good. you're like me. the voice is _wrong._ both of them are wrong and bad and we're good because we try to help people. we want to make people happy. we take care of our brothers. that makes us good." He kept stroking. "you're not broken either. maybe not normal... but i'm not normal either! it's okay to not be normal."

Some of the ache in Berry's soul lessened at that, and his tears started to slow. They were alike. Daemon's warmth helped ground him. Even if they deserved better, they still wanted him. He muttered into his chest, "ITS OKAY NOT TO BE OKAY...?"

"that too... normal and okay are two different things. you can be really normal and not okay at all. us, we're not normal, but we're okay. we've got each other. that makes it okay."

"NOT NORMAL, BUT OKAY..." he repeated to himself. He nuzzled into the chest and took a deep breath of the nice smoky, tangy barbeque smell. He didn't want to be alone again tonight. "MAY I SLEEP WITH YOU TONIGHT?"

"yeah. not normal, but we're okay." He gently kissed the top of Berry's skull. His alpha scent filled the room, protective and warm. "sure you can! it can still be on the floor if it makes you more comfortable."

The kiss made him blush as the strong, safe scent filled Berry, helping him relax. He felt safe, accepted, loved, and it made the voice quiet. He hid his face in Daemon's chest. "PLEASE.” He was so tired. "IF YOU DON'T MIND."

"alright." He gently scooped Berry up, blanket and all, and ported them to his bedroom.

He had cute dog posters and music posters on the wall, a small TV with a VCR, and a rounded bed almost like a dog bed, with a few extra blankets. His windowsill had an overflowing ashtray on it, and there was the scent of smoke and, fainter, weed. He put Berry down next to the bed and pulled off a pillow and blanket, then laid down next to him. "is this okay?"

Berry took in the room. It was very nice. It felt lived in and like Daemon. He cuddled up against the warm skeleton, like the cat that Daemon claimed he was. Berry knew he was being needy, but Daemon was willing to accommodate him. He was warm, safe, and loved. His sockets were heavy as he said, "THIS IS PERFECT." His breath was evening out.

"alright, good. sleep well, berry. sweet dreams." Daemon kissed Berry's skull again and snuggled up. He would hold on to Berry all night, protecting him from everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Accepting all submissions for baby name. Plz leave them with your comment. XD


	12. Every Push, Every Shove, Every War, Every Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which two different breakfasts go unfinished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all you awesome readers!  
> Thank you so much for your kudos, comments. We love hearing form you all! Also don't forget to bookmark or subscribe!  
> I hope you enjoy this chapter! <3 - Diyami
> 
> Sorry it's late again, boy it's been a week fam. Happy holidays! - GetMcDunkedOn

Berry slept later than normal that morning. He was so warm and comfortable. While it was warm under the bed, it wasn't too uncomfortable. It was really that which ended up waking him up. 

He cracked open his sockets. He had his head laying on soft material and could hear a strong pulse of a soul beating. He lifted his head to see Daemon awake. Berry blushed. "GOOD MORNING."

Daemon looked down at him with a smile. He had his phone in hand and was just absently playing a game on it to kill time. He put it down when Berry spoke and rubbed at the shorter skeleton's head gently. "good morning, berry. did you sleep well?"

Berry gave a soft purr at Daemon's touch, "YES. YOU’RE VERY COMFORTABLE, THANK YOU."

"glad to hear it," he said with a grin. "i've been told i'm super warm!"

Berry nodded, still purring, "YOU ARE." His face scrunched up cutely as he thought, Daemon was always delightedly warm, and even hot when upset, now that he was thinking about it. Berry asked, "ARE YOU PART ELEMENTAL? "

He shook his head. "i'm part dragon. not a lot. our father was maybe a quarter dragon. i got more of his influence than howl... thank goodness for that." Howl resented any similarity between himself and his abuser.

Berry laid his head down on Daemon to listen to his soul beat. He could understand Howl not wanting to be like his abuser. "IT’S JUST A PINCH OF DRAGON? YOU GOT THE BEST PART, ALL WARM AND TOASTY." He cuddled into Daemon's warmth. It felt so safe with him and Howl. "DO YOU HOARD TREASURE?" he teased lightly.

He chuckled quietly. "well, i got more dragon than i let on... not all of it is good." He rubbed Berry's skull gently. "i hoard people i like and protect. my friends and family are my treasure."

Berry's soul skipped a beat as he whispered in awe and disbelief, "I'M A TREASURE?" By the Angel, he wanted to show Daemon how much that meant to him. When he lifted his head, Daemon's ruggedly handsome face was just inches away. He crawled the few inches hovering just above him. 

"yeah, you're definitely a treasure to me. you're very sweet and kind. you care so much, and i like people like that, 'cause i'm like that. also you're cute. and funny." He grinned, all crooked and goofy. He looked like his tail would be wagging if he had one.

"YOU'RE AMAZING, LOVING, KIND." Berry lowered his head and nuzzled next to him. An idea of a kiss had the voice muttering.

~~Tempting good monsters. You dirty Sully ruin good monsters.~~

Berry shivered. It was right, this was bad. “I'M BEING BAD." He closed his sockets and took a deep calming breath. His body quivered as he was filled with smelt of love, home, safety, of Daemon. Berry whispered, "IT’S SO HARD TO BE GOOD AROUND YOU."

The voice was louder.

Daemon’s grin faded when Berry went on, and he pet the smaller skeleton's skull again.

"you're not being bad... i promise. i won't do anything to you that you don't want. you can't tempt me. and i don't make promises easy."

The praise had Berry blushing a bright blue. He believed in Daemon with all his soul; this lovely, caring skeleton had always been the perfect gentleman. Even when Berry was bad and the voice condemned him for his actions.

He rested his skull against Daemon's shoulder. "IF I CAN'T TEMPT YOU, THIS... IS OKAY?" He thought back to last night of Daemon kissing the crown of his skull. Nothing bad happened. How safe he felt in that moment. He tried to convince himself. "IF I KISS YOU? IT'S NOT BAD? I'M NOT BAD?" he asked hopefully.

The voice yelled at the thought, making him flinch at the pain in his head. 

~~FILTHY WHORE! YOU'RE ASKING TO BE PUNISHED~~

"yeah, this is okay." He kept petting gently, trying to comfort Berry. He was best at physical comfort, and he often lamented that he couldn't use it for Howl. "you can kiss me, if you want. that's not bad. i would love to kiss you, but i won't make you do it."

"DAEMON IS SAFE," he reminded himself. "I'M WITH FAMILY. FAMILY IS SAFE.'

Berry laid there for a few minutes, trying to quiet the voice. He tried to focus on here and now. The feel of Daemon's hand trying to relax him. The warmth of his strong, kind alpha under him. The spicy barbecue and smoke of Daemon and his room. Berry nuzzled Daemon's collar, letting the soft caring scent of Howl and his magic wash through. Berry's own knitted collar gently fluttered from his movements, its magic and scent adding the feelings of safety, home, and love.

To them, he was good. He felt proud and in love with them. They build him up so he could understand, and these feelings helped quiet the voice.

Berry's body was trembling as he lifted his flush face to look Daemon in the eyelights. "YOU’RE MARVELOUS. THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME INTO YOURS AND HOWL'S LIVES." He tenderly clinked their teeth together in a chaste kiss.

Daemon waited patiently, still trying to comfort Berry. Honestly, he was excited at the prospect. He'd not gotten a kiss in a while now, not from anyone. But he kept his enthusiasm minimal, not wanting to pressure Berry. He smiled at the praise, and before he could say anything, he felt Berry's teeth press against his. He actually blushed, his cheekbones turning deep green. A sheepish little giggle escaped afterwards.

"you're welcome... and thank you too. that was really nice."

Berry smiled, his eyelights star shaped at Daemon's reaction. His fingers brushed the beautiful green hue. Daemon looked so cute. Daemon smiled back, blushing a little more as Berry touched his face. Before he could say anything more, though, there was a knock at the door.

"BREAKFAST IS READY, YOU TWO."

"WE'LL BE RIGHT OUT," Berry called out. His smile became just as goofy. He gave one last gentle caress with his thumb over Daemon's cheek before moving to get off of him.

"coming, master." Daemon got up and stretched. "well, I'm glad that i could help. and you can kiss me again whenever you want."

Berry's blush got brighter when Daemon said that. "I CAN?" he asked in disbelief.

"yeah! i mean, you should say something first, but don't be afraid to ask. okay? it was really nice."

Nothing bad happened. 'MAYBE I CAN DO IT AGAIN,' he thought.

"OKAY. I'LL ASK."

It had even felt nice. Wonderful, even. He felt so safe and loved. He held his hand out for Daemon.

"great." He took Berry's hand and headed downstairs.

Howl had made omelets with peppers and onions and tomatoes and such. He was just pouring coffee as they came in. "DO YOU FEEL BETTER, BERRY?"

Berry squeezed Daemon's hand and nodded, "YES, I FEEL A LOT BETTER. THE VOICE IS A LOT QUIETER NOW."

"THAT'S GOOD. I'M SURE IT WILL COME AND GO. DON'T DESPAIR OVER IT. WE ALL HAVE CHALLENGES TO FACE, AND SOME NEVER GO AWAY. BUT THEY WAX AND WANE LIKE THE MOON."

The shorter skeleton smiled. Howl's words were so elegant. "I'LL DO MY BEST. THANK YOU FOR UNDERSTANDING." Berry held out his hand to Howl. "MAY I HOLD YOUR HAND?"

"OF COURSE. WHAT SORT OF FUTURE KING-" and family- "WOULD I BE IF I WASN’T UNDERSTANDING?" He finished pouring his coffee. "YES, BUT JUST FOR A MOMENT. I WANT YOU TO EAT BREAKFAST."

Berry took Howl's hand, feeling the softness of his wonderfully crafted gloves and the closeness of Howl. "ALRIGHT."

He squeezed gently. "WOULD YOU LIKE SOME COFFEE? OR TEA, PERHAPS?"

"TEA WOULD BE WONDERFUL. THANK YOU." He gave another squeeze before letting go.

"YOU'RE QUITE WELCOME." He poured Berry some golden flower tea. Daemon plopped down with his food and coffee.

Berry waited for the others to eat. 'HOWL ALWAYS MAKE SURE WE HAVE ENOUGH FOOD,' he told himself, but old habits die hard. He kept half his food for Howl and Daemon to eat some before he started in case they needed more.

"PLEASE TRY TO EAT ALL OF YOUR BREAKFAST. IT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT MEAL OF THE DAY, AFTER ALL."

"OKAY." Berry took a few more bites. "IT'S VERY DELICIOUS. THANK YOU FOR COOKING."

"YOU'RE WELCOME."

"berry..." Daemon cut his own. "are you gonna keep going to your cooking lessons?"

Berry's fork stopped in mid-motion. "I DONT KNOW..." He wanted to learn to cook. The lessons had been fun, but going out was also bad. What if he was found, who knew what might happen? "EVEN IF I DID GO, THE CORRECTION HAD HAPPEN OUTSIDE THE BUILDING.” The memories were creeping across his mind. “IT COULD HAPPEN AGAIN. THEY KNOW I’D BE THERE." Berry lost his appetite and put the fork down. 

Howl frowned. "WE WOULD PROTECT YOU, BERRY. NO MORE TAKING THE BUS. WE WOULD TAKE YOU THERE AND BACK AND STAY THE WHOLE TIME SO NO ONE CAN HURT YOU."

"I..." He felt like he was being greedy. "I WANT TO GO..." He worried at his bandana.

"then you can go." Daemon smiled, relieved. Howl was relieved too, though he tried not to show it. Both of them had worried he'd be too traumatized to want to go back.

"WE'LL MAKE SURE YOU ARE SAFE WHEN YOU GO."

Berry nodded, "THANK YOU." He was still scared, but he wanted to believe in them. They hadn't lied so far. They were keeping him safe from the queen. "BUT I WON’T GO OUT DURING A HEAT ANYMORE. EVEN WITH PILLS."

"NO? WELL, THAT'S FINE, IF THAT'S WHAT YOU WANT. BUT I PROMISE YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE AFRAID."

"what happened, anyway, did the pill not work?"

Berry couldn't look at them in the eyelights. "IT'S ALL MY FAULT. " He put his hands down in his lap and curled his hands in his pants. "I SHOULD HAVE LEARNED MY LESSON BEFORE, BUT I WANTED TO GO AND MAKE COOKIES...." It hadn't been worth it. He didn’t get to give them the cookies anyway. "STRETCH SAID I COULD GO OUT IF I TOOK THE PILLS. THAT OTHER OMEGA DID IT."

~~Dumb Sully. How many times do you need to repeat your lessons?~~

Berry shuddered at the truth in that statement.

"I TOOK THE MORNING PILL AND IT WORKED. WHEN I WENT TO TAKE THE EVENING PILL, IT WASN'T IN MY BAG....." Tears were gathered in his eyes. "IT MUST HAVE FALLEN OUT ON THE BUS. I WAS STUPID FOR GOING."

"YOU WEREN'T STUPID," Howl said, his voice firm. Daemon reached over to touch Berry's shoulder.

"mistakes happen, berry. you just need to be careful, that's all. if we come with you, we'll make sure you can take it at the right time."

“I'M SURE YOU WOULD.” He still didn't look up. 

~~…needy whore...~~ Berry closed his sockets to hide the pain that bought.

"I SHOULDN'T HAVE GONE OUT. I WAS GREEDY...." This class was the first activity Berry had really done on the surface. Stretch had tried to get him out of the house more, but all the places Stretch liked to go had swap-monsters there. It was stressful, and Berry would rather stay home where he was safe. This class was the first time in a long time he could pretend to be normal. There had been no swap-monsters in the class. The distraught skeleton mumbled, "I'M BEING GREEDY NOW... STILL WANTING TO GO." He lowered his head. 

~~…always a burden on monster kind.~~ Berry wrapped his arms around himself.

"IT'S NOT GREEDY. YOU'RE ALLOWED TO GO."

"don't listen to that voice." Daemon got up to hug him. "you're allowed to want things. especially to learn how to cook!"

Berry hugged Daemon back. He wasn't sure about that. It felt greedy.

"it's okay, really."

"YOU DON'T HAVE TO DECIDE NOW. I'M SURE IT'LL BE AWHILE BEFORE YOUR NEXT HEAT, ANYWAY. PLEASE FINISH YOUR FOOD, WE HAVE TO GET TO WORK."

Berry looked at the food. "I'M NOT HUNGRY." His tummy was in knots. "AND I NEED TO GET READY, I NEVER CHANGED LAST NIGHT."

"VERY WELL." He wished Berry would finish, but he couldn't force him. "GO AHEAD, THEN."

Daemon let go.

Berry could feel the disappointment. Howl had to work hard on the food and he was wasting resources. "I'M SORRY." He got up.

"YOU DON'T HAVE TO APOLOGIZE TO ME. YOU'RE THE ONE NOT EATING A FULL NUTRITIONAL MEAL."

"apologize to your body."

"SORRY..." Berry hissed to himself. 

~~...useless, good for nothing...~~

He ran off to the bathroom closing the door quietly but quickly. 

He lightly bonked his head on the door. "WHY CAN'T I DO ANYTHING RIGHT?"

The last few days had been so hard, but he _was_ trying his best. Just like he knew they were for him. 

He wiped the tears away. They knew he had trouble eating, and they asked about hard things when it was time to eat. 

Berry had talked about the correction to Howl, the therapist, over breakfast. Over and over it kept being brought up. "I WON'T DO IT AGAIN. I LEARNED MY LESSON."

~~Failure. Sully are only good for two things~~

He didn't dare talk back to the voice after yesterday. The small skeleton did what he was good at. He pushed the pain to the darkness of his mind and locked it up. He told himself, 'I WILL TAKE A SHOWER. I WILL PUT ON A HAPPY FACE AND I WILL MAKE THEM HAPPY.” And if that meant forcing himself to eat, then he would.

Berry got out of the shower with a fluffy towel wrapped around him. Being clean always felt better. He just put his stuff out of sight and went to change into clothes, but they were not there. 

He debated putting his dirty clothes back on. The idea made his bones feel dirty again. "NO," Berry mumbled. He decided to just go out to his room. It wasn't far, just a hand full of steps. Howl and Daemon were busy getting ready for work, "I SHOULDN'T BOTHER THEM ANY MORE." His hand came to the hole in his chest. "I... DON'T WANT THEM TO SEE IT." He grabbed another towel and draped it over his shoulder so it hung over both sides, covering the hole, before picking up his clothes. Berry made sure he had a smile on his face before peeking out the door to see if they were around before trying to sneak to his room.

The two resident skeletons cleaned up quietly. "do you think we're doing okay, master?" Daemon asked. Howl frowned down at the plates he was washing.

"I DON'T KNOW... BETTER THAN NOTHING, SURELY, BUT I DON'T KNOW IF WE'RE MISSING ANYTHING."

"i should've waited for a while to ask him about the lessons..."

"PERHAPS, BUT YOU DIDN'T MEAN ANY HARM, PUPPY. WE'LL LEARN FROM THIS."

"mmm... okay."

They left Berry to get ready on his own, though they stayed close by in case he called out for one of them again.

Berry made it to his room without indent. He pulled out grey overalls and a blue shirt and clasped his bandana on. He rested his hand on the beautiful soft material. "DO BETTER, BLUEBERRY." ~~Do as you’re told Sully. Don't disappoint again.~~

Berry squeezed the bandana. "I WILL LISTEN TO DAEMON AND HOWL. I LEARNED FROM THE CORRECTION. I WON'T GO OUT ALONE. DAEMON AND HOWL WILL KEEP ME SAVE."

He put on a cheerful face and went out to look for them. Daemon was waiting by the door as Howl collected papers quickly from the office. He came out and nodded to Berry.

"YOU GET TO SEE THE ANIMALS AT THE SHELTER."

"oh yeah! that'll be fun, right?"

They didn't seem disappointed anymore. Berry's smile reached his eyes at that. He loved animals. "YES!" he said with relief. "THIS WILL BE A LOT OF FUN."

"yeah, lots!" Daemon beamed. "let's go!"

Howl put him on the leash, and Daemon took Berry's hand. Berry gave him a genuine smile and squeezed his hand. They arrived at the shelter in a blip.

* * *

Stretch was curled up in his nest of blankets. Vex had got up to make them food, but he wasn't ready to get out of the bed just yet. The babybones seem to take after Vex, an early bird. He rubbed his belly, trying to get them back to sleep. The little souling was fluttering in circles, ready to start the day.

His phone rang suddenly, cutting through the peace of the morning.

He knew the moment the ring tone kicked on who it was. Stretch was tempted not to answer, but he knew he couldn't do that. The tired monster did wait until the very end of the song to answer, "yes your majesty?"

"Come to my office immediately," Queen Toriel ordered, her tone clipped and leaving no room for argument.

He said in a laid back tone, "very well, i'll be there as soon as i'm up and dressed."

"Don't waste my time, Judge. If you're not here within fifteen minutes, you'll regret it."

The warm glow of magic drained, leaving his face pale at that. Her majesty did not make threats lightly. He used the safest answer with her. "yes, your majesty."

"Good." She hung up.

Stretch listen to the dead air for a moment. He racked his hand down his face, "fuck..." He got up, moving way faster than he had in a long time, and quickly got dressed. As he came down the stairs, he called out for Vex.

Vex looked up from cooking breakfast, concerned. "WHAT'S WRONG?" he asked, turning off the stove and moving the pan to a cool burner.

"I was summoned," The pregnant monster grabbed the car keys with shaking hands and went toward the car. "I need to get to her office at the embassy, now."

"LET ME DRIVE YOU." He abandoned the food to follow outside.

"alright," Stretch unlocked the car and got into the passage seat. "she is pissed... more pissed than i thought she would be."

He got in and pulled them out of the driveway. "PERHAPS THE PRESS CONFERENCE SET HER OFF..."

"maybe." Stretch closed his eyelights and took a deep breath. "i'm sure she is going to demand answers." He had had the magic forced through him only once before. It wasn't pleasant. Being pregnant, he wasn't sure what would happen, but he told himself, 'i won't hurt blueberry.' He looked to Vex, "i'm pretty sure i know what she’s going to do, so don't tell me anything about what happen or what howl is planning, okay?"

"ALRIGHT. DO YOU NEED ME TO COME IN WITH YOU?" He was concerned about the baby too. The Swap Queen seemed crazy. He worried how she might lash out.

"that’d be nice.” He didn't think she would allow it. "the worst thing she could do is make ya wait outside."

"VERY WELL. I'LL COME IN, THEN." Even if she made him wait outside the room, he'd be close enough to burst in if necessary. He pulled up to the embassy ten minutes later and got out with his husband.

Stretch walked with his mate to the Queens door. He reached up and knocked. After a moment, it opened, and she gestured him in. When Vex tried to follow, she shot him a glare.

"this is my mate and husband, your highness," Stretch introduced his mate. "Vex brought me here."

"A PLEASURE," he lied.

"You can wait outside," she said. He sighed through his nose and stepped back through the door frame. She closed the door and turned to Stretch.

"Where is Berry?"

Stretch hesitated before saying, "he's not home right now."

"That doesn't answer my question. _Where_ is he?" she demanded

Stretch sighed again and replied, trying to stay as vague as possible. “He is with his friends." It was the truth.

She glared at him down, lifting her hand. "I didn't want to have to do this, but you give me no choice." She drew upon the Judge's magic with a harsh pull. _"Where is the Sully Berry?"_

Stretch flinched at the raised hand. The pull of the magic was instantaneous. The magic was like a live wire jammed into him. There was no way to be prepared when it was forced.

The Judge's magic turned on him at the Queen's command. "berry is staying with his friends at their house." He tried not to say more, but he was compelled to tell the truth. He tried to keep it short and simple. "in the city."

She snarled. "Where? What's the address?" she demanded.

Magic sweat rolled down his skull as he tried to fight against magic compulsion that made him want to spill his non-existent guts. He knew he couldn't lie, but he didn't have to give more information than was asked for. He flinched again as she snarled. "i don't know the address." He was so thankful he didn't know it. He added in before she could ask, "i have never driven there." He hoped she would think he had never been there.

She stared him down, trying to figure out if he was hiding anything. After a long moment, she bared her teeth. "Listen to me, Judge. The very moment you see Berry again, you will Judge him and bring him to me. That's an order you will _not_ squirm out of."

He didn't want to do this Judgment, but justice was blind. His wants didn't matter; he had willingly entered the contract years ago, when he passed the trials. He was bound to find the Queen her truths and deliver the guilty for their verdict. The magic branded the command into his unwilling soul. He hissed, "yes, my queen."

"Good." She let the magic go, walking over to her desk and sitting down. "Now get out of my sight."

Rubbing absently at his chest, he went quickly out the door, not needing to be told twice. He cursed her mentally and slammed the door. He grabbed Vex and booked it out of the embassy.

"ARE YOU-" Vex cut off as he was tugged along so quickly, nearly stumbling. When they got outside, he stopped and pulled Stretch closer. "WAIT A MOMENT. BREATHE, LOVE."

Stretch held on to Vex and took a deep breath. "i can't see berry." He closed the space between them. He had expected to be summoned by her, to be forced to tell her where Berry was, but he never thought she would force a Judgment. "i should've known the bitch would do this," he berated himself.

"SHE FORBADE YOU FROM SEEING HIM?" He bristled, indignant, but kept it mostly to himself. He held Stretch close, hugging him, and stroked his back. "IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT. SHE'S JUST CRAZY.  
The upset monster thought about the command. "no she commanded the opposite." He really wanted a smoke. "when i see berry, i have to bring him to her. i have to Judge him." He rubbed at his chest some more. The tingle of magic left his soul aching.

"I SEE. THAT'S... WORSE." He sighed, but rubbed Stretch's back still. “WHAT ABOUT PHONE CALLS, CAN YOU DO THAT?"

" i.. i think that would be okay." He kissed Vex. "by the angel! you are so smart."

He kissed back softly. "WELL, I TRY MY BEST. IT'LL BE ALRIGHT. HE'LL BE SAD, BUT WE'LL JUST ONLY USE THE PHONE UNTIL THIS IS ALL OVER."

"We can." Stretch gave him a squeeze. "Let's get out of here."

"YES, LET'S GO HOME." He would be late to work, but damn it, he was going to remake a much nicer breakfast and dote on his upset lover. He carried Stretch to the car like the prince charming he was.

Stretch blushed deeply. "you’re always managing to sweep me off my feet."

"I LOVE YOU VERY MUCH. WHY MUST YOU PUN?" He sighed exaggeratedly as he opened the passenger door and let Stretch down.

"it's just one of my pun-tastic abilities." He kissed Vex on the cheek, chuckling as he got in the car.

"HOW DARE YOU," he complained, closing the door behind his lover. He drove them back and carried Stretch in too. "I'LL MAKE YOU PANCAKES. WHAT DO YOU WANT IN THEM? BANANAS? BLUEBERRIES? CHOCOLATE?"

"one of each with extra honey," he tried to look as cute as he could. "please?"

"YOU'RE LUCKY YOU'RE SO PRETTY." He kissed Stretch nice and deep, then set him down in a kitchen chair. He discarded the trashed breakfast and started again with pancakes.

Stretch blushed deeper and leaned into the kiss. When the kiss broke, he said, "i berry much can’t believe how handsome you are. thanks a brunch for making breakfast." He sat at the table and pulled out his phone to call Berry, but it went to voicemail. He frowned. "do you know if red fixed berry's phone?"

"VERY LUCKY. VERY LUCKY INDEED." He sighed. The question made him tilt his head. "HE MIGHT NOT BE DONE. TRY CALLING HOWL OR DAEMON."

Stretch dialed Howl's number. "it's best i let him know so he can warn berry not to tell me anything, anyway."

"YES, THAT'S TRUE." His magic boiled when he thought of how that bitch was using Stretch. So he tried to just focus on the pancake batter he was mixing.

Howl picked up by the second ring. "HELLO?"

"hiya, howl. it's stretch," he sighed. "i needed to talk to you and then berry if he's around?"

"GOOD MORNING, STRETCH. YES, HE'S HERE WITH ME. WE JUST ARRIVED AT THE ANIMAL SHELTER. IS SOMETHING THE MATTER?"

"ah, fuck." He scratched the back of his skull. "why did you tell me that? i need you tell him not to panic, but i can't under any circumstance see him or know where he is until this is over."

"OH, I SEE. I'LL PUT HIM SOMEWHERE ELSE, THEN." 

He laid his head down on the table and put the placemat over his head. "the queen summoned the Judge for a Judgment. she demanded the truth. the bitch demanded to know where berry is hiding. i told her i don't know the address and never drove there. luckily, she took it as i haven't been there, but the queen has commanded me. i will have to take berry the next time i 'see' him and take him in for trial, magic will force me to comply. she'll probably bring me in for questioning again, so please don't let me know the locations you’re at."

"SHE SEEMS DESPERATE, EVEN THOUGH BERRY IS JUST ONE MONSTER. IF I WERE HER, I'D WORRY MORE ABOUT HER PRECIOUS SANITARIUM... I WILL BE MORE CAREFUL."

Stretch nodded, making the place mat slide to the floor. "howl, thanks for taking care of him."

"OF COURSE. I WANT TO PROTECT HIM. FOR MY OWN SAKE AS WELL AS YOURS AND HIS."

He smiled. "good to know you return my bro’s feelings," he teased.

There was a pause. "...DO YOU REALLY THINK HE FEELS THAT WAY?" His voice was quieter, like he was trying not to be heard.

His smile stretched ear to ear. "dude." His excited little brother side came out. "i've never seen him so smitten."

"I SEE... AND NOT JUST FOR DAEMON?"

"nah." He shook his head, forgetting Howl couldn't see him. "i’ve seen the way he looks at ya, howl. he is trying his best for both of you. he wants to be close to both of you." He said somberly, "he never got to learn how to have a romantic relationship, so he might have trouble expressing it to the untrained eye."

"OH." There was another pause. "WELL... I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT. THAT'S A MATTER TO WORRY ABOUT LATER, THOUGH. DID YOU WANT TO TALK TO HIM BEFORE I SEND HIM AWAY?"

"yes please."

"VERY WELL." There was the sound of a door opening, and his voice was muffled like he'd covered the receiver. Then the phone was given to Berry.

"HELLO BROTHER," Berry said.

"hey bro, i love ya. don't you forget that." Stretch went on to explain what happened. "it's just for a little while, but don't tell me where you are or where you're going."

"OR VISIT," he said sadly. 

"it will be alright, bro. our family has gotten a lot bigger and we're all looking out for you."

"I EXPECT CALLS WHEN IT'S SAFE."

"of course, big bro. now, when are you going to tell daemon and howl that you like them? you nagged me to have a family and settle down. now it's your turn."

Berry turned bright blue and looked to see if Howl was watching. "I AM NOT ALLOWED TO..." he whispered.

"blueberry!" he snapped, "you are allowed to." He sighed and tried to think of a way to put it. "you want to be with them right?"

"YES! BUT-"

Stretch used the line his brother would tell him. "we don't have butts, brother. you're collared by howl, you have rights with the fellswaps. the rights you should have had all along as a monster. you are allowed a relationship and a family."

Berry was quiet for a few minutes. it reminded him of Daemon telling him, 'if you want it to be true, then do it.'

"OKAY, THANK YOU BROTHER."

"i'll talk to ya later bro. love ya," Stretch told him.

"LOVE YOU TOO." Berry hung up the phone and turned to Howl and took a deep calming breath. His face still held a blue tint. "HOWL, DO YOU HAVE TIME TO TALK?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you believe Stretch spilled the beans? That is a sibling for you lol - Diyami
> 
> BY THE WAY WE FIGURED OUT A BABY NAME! But you don't get to know it yet :3c - GetMcDunkedOn


	13. No Apology Because My Urge is Genuine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which hands are held. A lot. And it's very important.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We hope you enjoy the chapter, sorry for the wait! I was distracted and then AO3 was wheezing a bit... - GetMcDunkedOn
> 
> I drew this picture and forgot to post it last chapter: I hope you like it.  
> 

Howl paused on his way to the office when Berry asked to talk to him. "YES, I SUPPOSE. COME INTO MY OFFICE."

Berry followed Howl into his office, fidgeting with his bandana. Trying to let the soft texture and comforting scent calm him. He blushed as he remembered it was Howl’s wine grape scent and nurturing intent he was seeking, and he tried to think about what he was about to say. He didn’t want the voice getting loud again.

The office was full of animal shelter management items like paperwork, pictures, and tools, but Howl’s desk also had a small map and other non-shelter related things. He absently straightened up papers as he waited for Berry to speak. "TAKE YOUR TIME."

Berry took some deep breaths.

"I.."

This was a lot scarier than he thought it would be. Not only was he going to tell one of his crushes how he felt, but he knew feeling this way was bad. The voice was going to remind him he was Sully. He wasn’t allowed this, it was bad… he was bad… He didn’t want to lose what he had with them and end up with the nothing that he really deserved. Berry’s jaw quivered. ‘NO, I WON’T LOSE THEM. THEY TOOK ME IN.’ Howl’s scent washed over him. The feel of Daemon’s hugs and cuddling lingered in his bones. He reminded himself, ‘THEY LOVE ME AND I LOVE THEM.’

"I..." He wasn't sure how to say this. Truthfully, he never thought he would find someone to put up with him being a Sully, so he had tried not to dream about it either. The small skeleton felt like he was adrift. Berry grabbed on to the feeling of love, kindness, and safety, letting the idea and sentiment guide him. "I'M SO LUCKY TO HAVE YOU AND DAEMON IN MY LIFE.” He knew he was asking for a lot. “I WANT TO BE GREEDY. I WANT TO KEEP YOU BOTH BY MY SIDE." He took a deep breath, "I KNOW YOU DON’T LIKE TOUCH, BUT...” He squeezed his bandana, inhaling Howl’s scent deeply. “I LOVE YOU AND DAEMON. I LOVE SPENDING TIME WITH YOU. BEING WITH YOU AND HOLDING HANDS. I WANT TO BE BOTH OF YOURS."

Howl only looked up when Berry said the word 'love.' His face flushed a light periwinkle and he paused in gathering his papers. 

It was a short eternity before he answered. Berry stood in silence awaiting a reply. His fingers gripped tightly to his bandana, and he tried to keep himself from bolting from the room. His soul was beating loudly. But then, Howl got up and went over to Berry and gently took his hands. Berry's soul felt like it was going to beat through the hold in his ribs and fall out right there for them all to see. The short skeleton could barely hear his crush talk. 

Then Howl broke the silence. "I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT. I LOVE YOU TOO, BERRY. AND I KNOW DAEMON DOES AS WELL." 

Berry heard coveted words. He purred gently as his thumb tenderly caressed Howl's hand. A big dopey smile bloomed on his face.

Howl smiled back, a light blue flush still on his cheeks, a rare and genuine smile that didn’t often grace his scarred mouth. "YOU'RE SO VERY PRECIOUS..."

Howl was amazingly handsome when he blushed. Berry’s own flush got deeper when Howl confessed. He squeezed the strong sharp claws tenderly to simulate the hug he wanted to give him. "YOU’RE MY PASSIONATE GUARDIAN ANGEL."

"I CAN ACCEPT THAT NICKNAME," he said grandly. "I'M HAPPY TO PROTECT YOU."

Berry put his other hand on top of Howl's smiling happily. "I LOVE YOU." He patted his new datemates hand. "WE SHOULD TELL DAEMON. I HAVEN'T TOLD HIM YET, EITHER."

Howl flushed a little more, pleased that Berry would say it so openly. "YES, WE SHOULD. YOU CAN BRING HIM IN HERE."

Berry gave Howl one more tender squeeze. "OKAY." He let go and went to the door. He picked up his pace as he went down the halls looking for Daemon.

* * *

Daemon was in the dog area. He'd let all the dogs out of their kennels and was being - heh - dog piled. He was giggling as a pack of puppies jumped all over him and licked him.

Berry stopped to watch Daemon play. The happiness and warmth he felt had the hated voice a dull noise in the background, easily forgotten for the moment, and happiness Daemon showed while playing with the puppies was exhilarating. Babies. He remembered Daemon telling him he could have some if he wanted to. In that moment, the hurt skeleton could believe it to be true, if he believed enough in Daemon and Howl, in their love. If everything went right, he’d get to stay with them. He closed his blue eyes, tempting fate with the image of holding their child in his arms, even if it was Howl and Daemon that had their child, it would still be his too. He wanted to believe it could happen. One of Berry's hands wrapped around his empty middle. They could talk to Undyne? Maybe she could help when he was ready to try. Daemon and Howl made him feel safe and loved, and just maybe, they could undo the damage that was done to him. Berry leaned on the door frame and opened his eyes carefully. He knew how fast life could go south. The world could rip everything from you, leaving you hurt, naked and alone in a matter of moments. 

Memories came of omegas getting their babies ripped from them at the Sanitarium and sent away. ‘Unwanted children,’ the guards called them. He shivered. That was a lie, the omegas always wanted them. 

Family of your own, a baby. It was a dangerous thought. Berry sighed, his arm dropping from his middle. Dreams were painful. Hope was painful. Puppies and Daemon’s happiness was now. He had to live in the now, which was a safer thing to think about. His hand grabbed his overalls just over the hole in his chest. Yet, the idea of a baby was just too tantalizing to let go of, so he put that thought in a safe place for later. The Sanitarium, no, his life in general, had made sure of that lesson. Don’t take things for granted.

He wanted to keep moments like today in his heart, so he could have a salve to soothe the pain when it was taken away again. He continued to watch the cute scene of Daemon and the puppies, letting it burn into his memory. Here and now was best to think about.

After a few minutes he called out, "DAEMON."

Daemon was just laughing in delight, petting as many dogs as he could, his eyelights bright. When Berry called out to him, he looked up and grinned.

"hi!" He got up, scooping up the smallest dog, a multi-colored, long-furred baby. "berry, this is jack! he was born five weeks ago, and he's the runt of the litter. almost didn't make it when his mom stopped feeding him. i bottle feed him every day now! he's starting to get socialized. he's an aussie, so he'll need a really energetic owner that lets him herd things. say hello!"

Berry was surprised that any mom would stop feeding their baby, but he smiled as Daemon talked about bottle feeding. 'HE'S SUCH A WONDERFUL ALPHA. ALWAY PROVIDING,' he thought. Berry gave the puppy pats. He was so cute. "HELLO JACK, YOU'RE LUCKY TO HAVE SUCH A CARING ALPHA TO KEEP YOU SAFE,” he cooed at the puppy. Berry looked at Daemon with a dopey love filled smile. "HOWL AND I WANTED TO TALK WITH YOU. HE IS WAITING IN HIS OFFICE."

The puppy squirmed and licked Berry gently, whining happily. Daemon's pupils were hearts as he watched the baby. He blushed at Berry's words. "hehe, yeah, he is~ the office? okay, lemme get these pups settled." He gently put Jack back, since he couldn't be with the others unsupervised so young. The older dogs got their food, and he made sure all the exits were secure before following Berry.

Berry took Daemon's hand in his and rubbed his thumb over his love's knuckles. He smiled and led the way back to the office. Howl had composed himself again and was filling out paperwork. Berry knocked on the door before opening it, a smile playing on his face. "HELLO, ANGEL."

"HELLO." He flushed again a little at the name. Daemon grinned wider again but tried to hide it.

Berry led Daemon into the room. hever letting go of his hands. "DAEMON, YOU ARE AN AMAZING ALPHA. YOU TAKE CARE OF US AND PROTECT US. YOU HELP MAKE ME FEEL SAFE. YOU'RE SO MUCH MORE THAN I EVER DARED TO DREAM OF HAVING." He took a deep breath and looked up hopefully. "I LOVE YOU AND HOWL. I WANT TO KEEP YOU BOTH BY MY SIDE, IF YOU'LL HAVE ME TOO."

Daemon blushed a dark green, peeking over at Howl. Howl kept busying himself with the papers to hide his face, though he was definitely blushing too. Seeing that, knowing Howl already greatly approved, he let himself be overjoyed. He hugged Berry nice and tight.

"of course i want that! i love you lots too. i wanna be there for you forever. so... you'll date us~?"

"YES!" Berry hugged him back. He couldn't believe how lucky he was, not finding one but two such very special monsters willing to share their lives with a Sully. Tears of joy started to freely fall.

"i'm so glad!" Daemon held on tightly, his soul thumping hard. His alpha scent filled the room, protective, strong. He couldn't help himself. Howl's scent reacted, as it always did, while he hid his smile with work.

Berry purred quietly. Whenever he was hurting or upset, Daemon held Berry and comforted him. The strong alpha scent was associated with Daemon, with safety. He couldn’t mix up his alpha’s smell with anyone else’s. Then, the sweet grape scent of Howl mixed with it, nurturing and caring. Berry's purr got louder. He felt so loved and wanted. His own sweet scent came and for the first time, he was too love-drunk to suppress it. "I LOVE YOU, MY PUPPY AND MY ANGEL."

‘of course he smells of blueberries,’ Daemon thought as he took in the scent with a sigh of delight. It was so sweet, and he was so happy to smell it. Berry trusted him enough to let out his scent. He purred, nuzzling Berry a little.

Berry eyelights were in the shape of hearts. He looked over to Howl and lifted his hand. "MAY I HOLD YOUR HAND?"

Howl looked up, still slightly flushed. He put aside his papers and went over gently taking Berry's hand. Daemon was still purring and hugging him.

Berry took Howl's hand and tenderly rubbed his thumb on the back of it. He tried to burn this memory into his mind. The lovely smells of his two datemates, the warm feeling of life, safety, and family. The feel of Howl and his wonderfully soft glove and Daemon's embrace. "YOU'RE BOTH SO WONDERFUL."

Howl squeezed Berry's hand gently. "YOU ARE TOO."

"yeah, you're great! can i kiss you?"

Berry remembered when he kissed Daemon it made him feel so loved and thankful to be alive. He had kissed no one with that intent before. Only Daemon had kissed him like that. He knew it could lead to temptation, but Daemon was safe; he only took what Berry gave. He nuzzled lovingly into Daemon. "YES."

"thank you." He pulled back just enough to gently press his teeth to Berry's. Howl looked away, holding on still. He was happy. He was, but... He couldn't offer the same.

Berry blushed brightly as Daemon kissed him. He lifted his unoccupied hand and caressed Daemon's jaw. When the kiss ended, he looked at Howl. Seeing him avoid looking, he smiled and understood. Berry wasn't comfortable with anything more than this, cuddling and kissing. He gave a squeeze. "YOU'RE ALRIGHT. I'M SCARED TOO, BUT DAEMON WILL KEEP US SAFE." He looked away when he admitted that. After taking a second to gather his courage, he looked back to Howl, love and understanding in his eyelights, "WE WILL ALL TALK TO MS. CANDY AND WORK THROUGH THIS TOGETHER."

Daemon felt his soul flutter at the kiss, and he pressed his face into Berry's shoulder gently with a smile afterwards. Howl looked back over when Berry spoke, surprised by the words. But they eased the discontent in his soul. Daemon had always been understanding too, it was just his mind that sometimes scolded him for being unable to offer proper romantic care. "...YES, YOU'RE RIGHT. HE ALWAYS DOES. AND I WILL GET BETTER TOO."

Berry purred happily. He felt so light and fluffy, like he could float away if he wasn't tethered to his datemates. He squeezed Howl's hand reassuringly. "I LOVE YOU BOTH." He nuzzled the side of Daemon's head. He thought about what his brother said. "WHAT DO WE DO NEXT?"

Daemon finally pulled away after one last squeeze. Howl did the same, returning to his desk.

"FOR RIGHT NOW, NOTHING. I TOLD YOUR BROTHER I'D PUT YOU SOMEWHERE ELSE, BUT I DON'T REALLY HAVE TO DO THAT IF HE BELIEVES ME. YOU'RE SAFER WITH US. FOR THE TIME BEING, IT'S BUSINESS AS USUAL."

Berry nodded. That made sense. If Stretch didn't know he was there, it was fine for him to be there, but lying to his brother made him feel dirty. "I DON'T LIKE LYING TO STRETCH, BUT I'M SURE HE WILL UNDERSTAND."

"I DON'T LIKE IT EITHER, BUT IT CAN'T BE HELPED. I DON'T WANT TO PUT YOU SOMEWHERE I CAN'T PROTECT YOU."

Berry squeezed his bandana. "I’D RATHER STAY WITH YOU BOTH AS WELL."

"I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT. YOU CAN HELP DAEMON SOCIALIZE THE ANIMALS, IF YOU'D LIKE."

Berry smiled happily. "I'D LIKE THAT." he took Daemon's hand.

"yeah, let's go!" He led the way back to the dogs.

* * *

The rest of the day passed normally. It was right before Howl was getting ready to leave that his cell phone rang with an unknown number. He checked the caller ID, then frowned. He answered cautiously. "HELLO?"

"Greetings Howl, it's King Asgore."

"OH, GREETINGS." He relaxed. "I TAKE IT YOU WERE ABLE TO COMPLETE YOUR SEARCH?"

"Yes, but..." The King sighed. "They tried to clean up the evidence."

"WHAT?" He tightened his grip on the phone. "SO QUICKLY...!? BASTARDS... WAS THERE ANYTHING GOOD?"

"We couldn't find any files. All hard files were missing. The servers had a 'glitch' that wiped them clean. Alphys is trying to recover the data, but it has all been scrubbed. I will check with her in a few days.” The King sighed. “As for the monsters. They wouldn't talk to us. They wouldn't say they were being abused or hurt. They are scared and do not believe we will help them. The current finding is the facility is unfit and must offer them a better environment. Good bedding and the like. The shock collars were removed from the residents, at least, too. Queen Toriel is willing to make the changes, so without evidence or a witness testimony that they are in immediate danger, they are not being removed."

"DAMN IT." Howl glared at the wall. "I DIDN'T EXPECT THEY COULD HIDE SO MUCH IN JUST ONE NIGHT. THIS IS A PROBLEM." He tried to think. "THE BETTER CONDITIONS ARE SOMETHING. MAYBE SOMEONE WILL TALK WITH SOME MORE PERSUASION LATER..."

"Maybe once they see we have forced some changes, they will believe we want to help them. We are following up in a few days to make sure the new minimums are met.” 

"YES, THAT MIGHT BE THE CASE. LET'S HOPE SO." 

“By the way, good job with the press conference. It has the humans demanding a new check and balance system in place for the facility as well. Something that has to do with mental health facility standards. The embassy is working with the humans to understand what monsters need. The Underswap Queen is currently in talks with the humans and the embassy.”

The praise made him preen a little, even though he was alone in the room, smoothing down his clothes. "THANK YOU. I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT. I HAD A FEELING THE HUMANS WOULD BE OUTRAGED AS WELL. DESPITE THEIR DIFFERENT SOULS, MOST SEEM TO UNDERSTAND MERCY QUITE WELL."

"How are you and Berry doing?"

"AH, WE ARE DOING WELL." He paused in his personal grooming to glance at the door to his office. "THOUGH WITH EVERYTHING GOING ON, I WAS THINKING OF GETTING AN EXTRA THERAPY APPOINTMENT..."

"That would be best. Hopefully, he will feel safe enough to make his statement. The sooner the better.” He sighed, “then we can press charges.”

"YES. WITHIN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS, HOPEFULLY. BUT I DON'T WANT TO PRESSURE HIM. IT'S ALWAYS DIFFICULT FOR VICTIMS TO SPEAK OUT."

"Yes." Howl could hear the years in his voice. "I understand, but he is the closest victim willing to make a claim of abuse. Do what you can." He sighed. "I'll let you go for now. If you need help, be sure to let us know."

"YES, I KNOW. I THINK IT'S GOING WELL FOR NOW." He finished fixing his clothes. "I WILL DO THAT. A PLEASURE TO SPEAK TO YOU, YOUR MAJESTY."

"You too." With that, Asgore ended the call.

* * *

It had been a few bliss-filled days since their confessions, and Howl had booked an appointment for today. A lot had happened in such little time. Berry was sitting on the floor by his bed. The healing monster had just written a little bit in his journal about breakfast and was closing it. He wanted to say he had written something every day when he went in today. He put it on the nightstand and got up. Anxious hands fidgeted with his collar a bit before he headed out of the room to look for the others. It was almost time to leave.

Howl and Daemon were waiting in the living room. Howl clipped the colorful leash onto Daemon's collar. "ARE YOU READY TO GO, BERRY?"

Berry nodded and blushed a little, smiling. "YES, ANGEL." He loved seeing that handsome blush on Howl. The regal skeleton did always flush when he was called that. It was sweet. Daemon smiled and took Berry's hand. They ported to the clinic. Berry gave Daemon’s hand a squeeze. "I'LL SIGN US IN PUPPY." He let go and went to the desk.

Daemon blushed too. Only Howl used to call him that. His pupils turned into little white hearts and he let Berry go. The secretary handed over another of the same diagnostic surveys from last time, and Berry filled it out carefully. He was feeling better with Howl and Daemon, but it still scared him that it was going to be taken away. He didn't want to believe it, but he couldn't stop thinking about it. And truthfully, he didn't know what to do next in their relationship. He had never been in a relationship, let alone a polyamorous one. He wanted to make sure he didn't mess this up... he turned in the survey when he was done. He feared what this was going to lead to one day, but excited that there was a small hope they would have a family one day.

After a few minutes, they were let into Candy's office. She looked up from the paper Berry had just filled out, smiling.

"Good afternoon. I didn't expect you three back so soon, but it's a pleasure."

Berry smiled at her. "HELLO." He took a seat on the couch to cuddle up to Daemon, knowing Howl would want the chair.

"GREETINGS." Howl took his seat.

Daemon cuddled up happily. "hiya."

Candy looked between them. "You seem much more physically open. That's good. What brought you in today?"

Berry said happily, "WELL, A LOT HAS HAPPENED. WE HAVE CONFESSED OUR LOVE FOR EACH OTHER." He blushed, waving his free hard at the three of them. He gave Daemon a squeeze while smiling at Howl. "ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS ARE NEW TO US AND.... IN TRUTH BOTH HOWL AND I HAVE FEARS WE WOULD LIKE HELP WITH."

"Oh, is that so? Well, congratulations. I'm happy for you." She smiled.

"DAEMON AND I HAVE BEEN 'TOGETHER' FOR MANY YEARS," Howl clarified. "BUT THIS WILL DEFINITELY STILL BE NEW."

"Of course." She wrote a few things down. "What are these fears you mentioned?"

"WELL... HOLDING HANDS WITH HOWL OR CUDDLING AND KISSING WITH DAEMON IS GREAT." Berry blushed deeply. "DAEMON WAS MY FIRST KISS... AND I THOUGHT A KISS WAS TOO TEMPTING... BUT DAEMON CANNOT BE TEMPTED AND HOWL DOESN'T LIKE TO BE TOUCHED." He added quickly, “DAEMON MAY BE AN ALPHA BUT HE ONLY TAKES WHAT I'M WILLING TO GIVE... AND I WANT TO GIVE MORE AND I'M SCARED ABOUT WANTING TO GIVE MORE... I FEEL CONFUSED. I KNOW IT’S WRONG TO WANT MORE, A SULLY IS NOT ALLOWED EVEN THIS. I'M BREAKING THE RULES... THE QUEEN IS ALREADY MAD AT ME... IF SHE FINDS OUT...”

~~RUINING GOOD MONSTERS WITH YOUR FILTH!~~

Berry flinched and grabbed onto Daemon.

"I DON'T DESERVE THEM. I AM GOING TO MESS THIS UP AND IT WILL ALL BE TAKEN AWAY..."

Candy listened quietly, nodding along. When he was done, she put her notebook down. "Well, let's take this one thing at a time. Are you saying your affirmations? I know it's hard to believe that you're not bad after it's been told to you for so long, but they should help with that feeling in time."

"I HAVE." He cuddled into his taller datemate's side. "DAEMON AND HOWL HELP WITH IT." He sighed. "IT'S REAL HARD TO DO ALONE." He squeezed the soft material of his collar.

"Well, that's alright. You don't have to do it alone, whatever helps is good." She nodded. "It's important to trust in the people you have a relationship with. So it's good you see that you can't tempt Daemon. I want you to also trust that they won't let this relationship be taken away, either. That's what the lawsuit is for, right?"

Berry sat quietly, thinking about that for a few moments. “I DON'T WANT TO BELIEVE THE ANGEL WOULD BE SO CRUEL AS TO LET ME KNOW THIS WONDERFUL BLISS AND THEN TAKE IT AWAY AGAIN... BUT..." The memories of his father, of living on the streets with Stretch, and of life in the Sanitarium haunted him. 'THERE IS A TRACK RECORD,' he thought. "YES," Berry said. He wanted to believe it, but it was hard. Just like believing Sully was made up, that he wasn't one. Just a normal hurt monster…

He desperately wanted this to work. He didn't want to lose this. It would hurt so much more. "I WANT TO BELIEVE IN THEM. I WANT TO BELIEVE IN OUR LOVE." He held on to Daemon and looked at Howl. "IF I CAN'T HAVE FAITH IN THE ANGEL TO PROTECT A SUL--" he took a breath and corrected himself, "--ME, I WANT TO BELIEVE IN MY DATEMATES."

"That's good, then." She nodded again, smiling. "Now then, what's this about Howl not liking to be touched?" She turned her attention to Howl, who couldn't stop himself from stiffening up a little. He busied himself tugging on his gloves to tighten them, brushing the softness.

"YES... IT HAS BEEN A LIFELONG ISSUE. YOU SEE, I WAS ALSO... SEXUALLY ASSAULTED." The words never liked to come out, catching in his throat. "BY THE MAN WHO SHOULD HAVE BEEN MY FATHER. IT BEGAN WHEN I WAS FIVE YEARS OLD, AND LASTED UNTIL I WAS TWELVE."

Candy's smile fell. She picked her notebook back up to start writing again. "That's a very long time, and so young, too... Did you have a mother, Howl?"

"YES. SHE DID NOTHING TO STOP IT. ACTUALLY, SHE WAS _JEALOUS._ He narrowed his sockets, and his voice turned bitter and venomous. He spoke of his father slowly, with fear, but his hatred for his mother was not weakened by terror in the same way. "IMAGINE, BEING JEALOUS OF YOUR OWN SON BEING RAPED. A HORRIBLE WOMAN. I DIDN'T KILL HER, BUT IT WAS TEMPTING."

"Are you saying you killed your father?"

"OH YES. WHEN I WAS TWELVE. I'D MET DAEMON, YOU SEE. WE WEREN'T RAISED TOGETHER, WE HAD SEPARATE PURPOSES. BUT WE RAN INTO EACH OTHER BY CHANCE, AND BONDED - NOT IN THE PHYSICAL SENSE, OF COURSE, WE SIMPLY FELT INSTANTLY CONNECTED. WITH HIS SUPPORT, I FOUND THE STRENGTH I NEEDED TO FIGHT FOR MYSELF. THE MAN GOT A HEALTHY DOSE OF MY CLAWS. I MADE SURE IT WAS PAINFUL."

Berry knew that already, but hearing it again didn't make it less sad. He hugged Daemon reassuringly. He wanted to offer comfort to Howl too and asked, "DO YOU WANT US TO HOLD YOUR HAND?"

Howl's hands twitched. He looked over to Berry, then reached out. His hand hesitated. If he had skin, it would be crawling. He pulled it back down to his lap. "I'M SORRY, I CANNOT RIGHT NOW."

Daemon looked sad, gently snuggling Berry.

Berry nodded. "IT’S OKAY. I UNDERSTAND." He snuggled into Daemon's embrace. "BUT WE ARE HERE IF YOU CHANGE YOUR MIND." He smiled kindly at his datemate.

"YES, THANK YOU." Berry's calm eased Howl a little. He resumed brushing gloved fingers against each other.

Candy wrote down a few more things. "So you've had this touch aversion ever since your father started molesting you, but you are usually able to hold hands?"

"I DON'T KNOW IF ‘USUALLY’ IS THE CORRECT WORD. SOMETIMES. I HAVE ALSO BEEN ABLE TO DO MORE AT TIMES. A HUG, OR SOMETHING SIMILAR. I HAVE... EVEN SLEPT WITH DAEMON A FEW TIMES."

"And how did you feel at those times?"

"...AFRAID," Howl admitted. "BUT DETERMINED. I WANTED TO DO IT FOR HIS SAKE. HE HAS NO SUCH QUALMS, AFTER ALL. IT WAS DIFFICULT, AND I HAD TO BE VERY CAREFUL TO KEEP MYSELF IN CHECK. BUT IT HELPED THAT I WAS THE ONE IN CONTROL. DAEMON IS VERY GOOD AT LETTING ME DO EVERYTHING I PLEASE AND NEVER PRESSURING."

Candy watched this all carefully, then wrote another note. "Well, I'll be honest, it's been a very long time since you were in that situation, and if you've managed to even have consensual sex, even if you were afraid, you seem to be doing well."

Howl made a vague gesture. "IT HELPS THAT I TRUST HIM WITH EVERYTHING, AS WELL. BUT NONETHELESS, SUCH INSTANCES ARE EXTREMELY FEW AND FAR BETWEEN. MOST OF THE TIME, THE LIGHTEST OF TOUCHES WILL MAKE ME BRISTLE."

She nodded. "Right, I don't mean to imply that you're not struggling. I only meant that you've made lots of progress on your own, which is admirable. It's always important to acknowledge your own efforts."

"YES, OF COURSE."

"But there is definitely more I can do to help. Haphephobia is common in cases of sexual assault. Exposure therapy often has excellent results. You hold hands with Berry and Daemon a lot?"

"WITH BERRY, YES. DAEMON, LESS SO."

"Why is that?"

Howl glanced over at his brother, the way his mouth twisted making the huge diagonal scar over his mouth even more prominent.

"HE DOESN'T ASK FOR TOUCH, SO IT DOESN'T OCCUR TO ME, I SUPPOSE."

Berry looked to Daemon. He held his tongue. It would be better if Daemon told him. Daemon nuzzled Berry's side and spoke quietly. "i'm used to howl's needs. i don't ever wanna pressure him or make him feel bad if he can't do something."

Candy nodded approvingly. "Well, that's good. Pressure only makes phobias worse. But I think, right now, small, occasional requests are a good start. Exposure therapy is gradual. The more you associate the feared stimulus with something positive, the easier it will become, in time. So while asking for sex is not a good idea, asking to hold hands isn't bad."

Daemon nodded, looking thoughtful. "okay... i'll try."

"Alright. And requests aside, Howl, you're also allowed to ask to touch someone if it's what you want. If you would like to show affection for Daemon, you can offer your hand by your own choice."

Howl also looked thoughtful. "THAT IS TRUE."

"There's no need to rush, though. Nobody expects you to start doing it all the time. I suggest you avoid seeking out touch in stressful situations, because it may reinforce the fear. When you want to hold hands, find something positive to get or do at the same time, to build up those positive associations."

"THAT MAKES SENSE."

"Excellent. I think that's plenty for one session. We went over quite a bit. Are there any other immediate concerns?"

Berry smiled at Daemon, proud he spoke up and proud of Howl for talking about his fears. Then he looked to Ms. Candy. "I THINK THAT IS EVERYTHING. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP. WE WILL WORK ON THESE THINGS."

"You're welcome, Berry. I'm always glad to help." She dipped her head. Howl stood up, finally leaving his gloves alone.

"WE'LL BE ON OUR WAY, THEN. HAVE A PLEASANT DAY."

"thanks for the talks," Daemon said cheerfully, also getting up.

Berry got up and followed them out, still holding Daemon’s hand. He looked happily at Howl. "I'M VERY PROUD OF YOU, HOWL." He squeezed Daemon’s hand. "YOU TOO, DAEMON."

Howl looked over at Berry, a little surprised. "OH. YES, OF COURSE, WHY WOULDN'T YOU BE." He looked thankful, though. "I AM, OF COURSE, GOOD AT EVERYTHING, INCLUDING GETTING THERAPY."

"you're the best, master! and you, berry. we're super proud of you too." Daemon kissed Berry's cheek.

Berry suppressed a giggle. Howl was so cute when he was confident. "YOU ARE." When Daemon said that, a light dusting of magic bloomed on Berry's face and his soul skipped a beat. "THANK YOU. I TRY MY BEST FOR YOU TWO." 

"you do really well."

Berry held his hands out; one for each of them. "MAY I HOLD YOUR HANDS?"

"I WOULD LIKE TO, BUT WE SHOULD GET HOME FIRST. SHE SAID TO HAVE A POSITIVE THING WHEN I TOUCH, SO I WILL FOLLOW THAT ADVICE." He picked up the leash.

Berry nodded. "OKAY." he pulled back his hand and touched his bandana, gently working the material. He kept his other hand out to Daemon waiting for his response.

Daemon took his hand with a smile. "to the house, then?"

"YES, PUPPY."

They arrived there with a quick shortcut. Howl unclipped the leash and put it aside, then settled on the couch and turned on the television to the food network. Watching Gordon Ramsay yell at idiots always made him happy.

Berry squeezed Daemon's hand before letting go. "Howl, did you want to knit? I can go get out the stuff."

"WELL, THAT'S FINE IF YOU'D LIKE. BUT I ASSUMED WE WOULD HOLD HANDS." He pulled off a glove.

Berry's eyes sparkled. "I WOULD LOVE TO HOLD HANDS WITH YOU. WE CAN KNIT AFTER." He offered his hand.

"THAT SOUNDS GOOD TO ME." He gently laid his bare hand on Berry's, then turned to the TV. Hell's Kitchen was on.

Berry smiled at Howl as he took his hand. "IS IT ALRIGHT IF I SIT?" He gestured at the open end of the couch. "I'LL GIVE YOU SPACE."

"OF COURSE, THAT'S FINE. WE'LL BE LIKE THIS A WHILE. PUPPY, COULD YOU GET ME A GLASS OF WINE?"

"yes, master." Daemon wandered off into the kitchen to do just that. "you want anything, berry?"

"THANK YOU HOWL." He sat on the couch and gave Howl his space while holding his hand. He felt Howl's bones with a gentle squeeze. "SOME TEA WOULD BE WONDERFUL." He smiled with stars in his eyes. "THANK YOU DAEMON." This so much more than Berry expected. "YOU'RE MAGNIFICENT."

Daemon blushed from where he was in the kitchen, putting on a kettle. Tea and wine were provided, and then he sat in front of the couch like a good puppy.

Berry soul felt overflowing with happiness, as he sat with his datemates. The condescending voice was mostly overpowered by the happiness and safety Berry felt with them. He blew on his tea and tenderly held Howl's hand. Occasionally, he would lean forward and place his hand on Daemon's shoulder and give him a squeeze. He was so proud and appreciative of both of them. Never in all his years as an adult could he picture a scene like this, with himself included. It was such an unattainable dream, yet here they were. He could barely hear the voice hissing in the back of his mind.

~~It will be all the more hurtful when you're put in your place and returned to your cell, Sully.~~

He didn't acknowledge the voice. He was going to be determined. They had already given him more than he dared to dream. He was going to return their love and to trust in Howl and Daemon to not let it be taken away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a kudos and a comment if you enjoyed! don't forget to subscribe.
> 
> I made some new pictures I hope you like them. I hope you like them. their not canon ~~yet~~  
>  https://twitter.com/Diyami1/status/1344904954889207808  
> 
> 
> Do you like the drawings and the chapter? Let us know. We love to hear your theories about what will happen next!


	14. Words Left Unspoken Left Us So Brittle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which cigarettes and beverages go unfinished, and plans are not made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing great. Thank you all for reading<3 Don't forget to comment, kudos and subscribe! - Diyami
> 
> Whooo got this out early this week! The next few chapters will be... interesting <3 - GetMcDunkedOn

It was February 13th, a Tuesday, and breakfast had concluded a few hours before. Howl was in his study and Daemon was in his room, probably having a cigarette. Berry was in the living room watching TV. A commercial was showing some valentines stuff. With everything that had happened he almost forgot it. This week's class was chocolates. Before all this he had thought chocolate would be too forward of a gift, but now he was dating Howl and Daemon. He was thankful he could still make them a culinary surprise, but he didn’t get them cards or had anything to wrap it in to give them.

He needed to go out, but he didn't want Daemon or Howl to know what he was getting and they wouldn't want him alone. Honestly, he didn't want to go out alone either. He went to the house phone. Red had offered to talk with him if he wanted to, maybe he would go shopping with him too? He went to the house phone and dialed his brother-in-law's number.

After three rings, Red answered the phone. "hey, what's up, blueberry muffin?" He sounded semi-distracted.

Berry blinked and looked around the room. "How'd’you know it was me?"

"if it was howl or daemon they would've used their cell phones to text... anyway, what's up?"

Berry giggled, "MAKES SENSE. I WAS THINKING YOU HAD A CAMERA IN HERE OR SOMETHING."

"oh, gross, cameras, no."

Berry laughed "I WAS WONDERING IF YOU WERE FREE SOME TIME SOON? I WANTED TO KNOW IF YOU WANTED TO HANG OUT AND GO SHOPPING."

"free to hang out? well..." There was some clicking and a clasp being shut.

Berry dropped his voice lower. "I NEED TO GET SOME STUFF FOR VALENTINE'S DAY."

"oh, for v-day, huh? yeah, sure, berry. tell you what, i'll be there in... half an hour?"

"OKAY THANK YOU SO MUCH." Berry smiled. "I'LL BE READY. SEE YOU THEN."

Berry got up and went to his room to grab his bank card and jacket. He stopped and looked at the card. He went to Howl's study and knocked on the door.

A brief moment, and then Howl called out, "COME IN."

Berry opened the door. "HI, HOPE I'M NOT INTERRUPTING."

He glanced up from some papers. "NO, NOT AT ALL. WHAT IS IT YOU NEED, MY KITTEN?"

Berry blush. He loved it when they called him that. "I WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW. I WAS GOING TO GO OUT WITH RED FOR A BIT. ALSO I WASN'T SURE SO I WANTED TO ASK--" he held up his bank card, "--IN MY WORLD SULLY CAN'T HAVE ACCOUNTS AS WE ARE UNFIT. FAMILY HAS TO BE THE MAIN HOLDER OF THE ACCOUNTS. MY CARDS ARE LINKED TO STRETCH'S ACCOUNT. DO YOU THINK IT'S OKAY FOR ME TO USE IT? IF NOT I COULD ASK RED TO STOP BY STRETCH'S HOUSE AND GET SOME CASH FROM HIM FOR ME TO USE."

He glanced at the card. "WELL, THAT SHOULDN'T BE A PROBLEM. I HIGHLY DOUBT THERE'S SOMEONE KEEPING CONSTANT WATCH ON SOMETHING LIKE YOUR CARD USE. BUT IF YOU'RE CONCERNED, THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH BEING EXTRA CAREFUL. JUST MAKE SURE RED KNOWS NOT TO TELL STRETCH WHERE YOU ARE." He dipped his head. "I TRUST RED TO TAKE CARE OF YOU, SO HAVE FUN."

"OKAY THANK YOU ANGEL." Berry held his hand out. "MAY I HOLD YOUR HAND BEFORE I LEAVE?"

"YOU'RE QUITE WELCOME. YES, OF COURSE." He pulled up his phone with his other hand and put on soothing music to be his positive stimulus, then gently took Berry's hand.

Berry squeezed his hand gently and smiled happily. "THANK YOU, MY WONDERFUL ANGEL." Berry wanted to nuzzle Howl's hand, but he refrained from asking. 'MAYBE,' he thought, 'I COULD ASK ON VALENTINE'S DAY." He thought. His smile brightened more at the thought. “I'LL SEE YOU IN A FEW HOURS.” He gave one last squeeze.

He blushed a little at the compliment. "YOU ARE SO VERY PRECIOUS TO ME." He squeezed back, then let go to resume his work. "YES, HAVE FUN. TELL RED TO KEEP ME UPDATED."

"OKAY." He closed the door quietly. Then he went upstairs and knocked on Daemon's door.

Daemon opened the door, quickly rolling down one sleeve as he did so. "hiya, berry, what's up?"

"I WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW I WAS GOING TO HEAD OUT WITH RED...." The action drew his attention, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

"oh, sure, yeah, have fun!" He smiled brightly, though he did semi-flinch at the question and put his arm behind him. "nothing..."

He was quiet for a minute, "THAT," he said as he gestured to his arm behind his back, "DOESN'T SEEM LIKE NOTHING."

Daemon’s smile faded, and he looked down. "...don't be mad at me?"

Berry felt even more concerned when Daemon said that. "I WON’T BE MAD AT YOU."

He put his arm back in front of him and rolled up the sleeve again. There was a rough burn mark in an almost perfect circle. A cigarette had been put out right there on his humerus, and very recently by the looks of it.

Berry frowned. If Daemon had only dropped his cigarette, it wouldn't look so perfect. Berry knew injuries, and injuries didn't look like that unless they were done on purpose. "IT'S GOING TO BE OKAY, PUPPY." He took Daemon's arm tenderly. "LET'S GO CLEAN IT UP IN THE BATHROOM."

"no, wait." He looked away, pulling his arm back. "i didn't... do it for the hurt... i..." He shuffled his feet. "...i want howl to heal it..."

Berry was quiet for a moment, trying to process that. He didn't like what he thought of. "DID YOU HURT YOURSELF SO HE WOULD TOUCH YOU?"

“...yeah.” He kept not meeting Berry's gaze.

Berry asked, "MAY I HUG YOU?" He held his arms out in open invitation.

There was an even longer pause before his response that time. "...yeah." He wrapped his arms around Berry nice and tight.

Berry hugged him back just as tightly. "IF YOU EVER WANT TO BE HELD OR TOUCHED, I'M HERE FOR YOU." He rubbed Daemon's back comfortingly. "AND REMEMBER WHAT MS. CANDY SAID. IF YOU WANT TO TOUCH HOWL, YOU CAN ASK. HE LOVES YOU ALOT AND HE WANTS YOU TO BE HAPPY TOO."

"i know... i know you're here now, it's just, this is what i've done for a long time..." He pressed his face into Berry's shoulder. "it just feels nice... his hand on my body, no glove in the way... the warm healing intent... i can feel that he loves me. it's just... it's hard to give that up..."

Berry could understand that. "MAYBE WE CAN FIND A DIFFERENT WAY, SO YOU CAN STILL FEEL HIS LOVE." He nuzzled his head into Daemon's neck.

"yeah... okay. a different way." He took a deep breath. "thanks, berry.”

"HAVE YOU ASKED TO HOLD HIS HAND THESE LAST FEW DAYS?"

“um, yeah, once. it was nice.”

Berry smiled at Daemon. "MAYBE YOU SHOULD ASK HIM MORE? MS. CANDY SAID HE NEEDS TO PRACTICE. SO WE SHOULD HELP HIM AND HELP YOU TOO. I LOVE YOU, PUPPY." Berry kissed him gently.

"okay. i'll ask him more often. i love you too." Blushing a little, he gently kissed back. He didn't want to let go.

Berry stayed in Daemon's warm embrace for a long while. "DO YOU WANT TO TALK WITH HIM? I'M SURE HE WOULD LIKE TO KNOW THAT YOU WANT TO BE HELD MORE."

Daemon was happy to pull Berry inside and sit with him on the bed, just snuggling and nuzzling. At the prompting, though, he nodded and let Berry go. "yeah, i'll do that. did you say you were going out?"

"YES," Berry replied, "BUT I'LL STAY IF YOU WANT ME TOO. I JUST NEED TO CALL RED."

"no no no. i'll be alright, you go and have fun, sweetie." He nuzzled again. "i'll be okay. promise."

Berry gently pulled Daemon's head down to rest the forehead together and whispered, "I'LL TAKE YOUR PROMISE, AND WHEN I GET BACK, WE CAN CUDDLE ALL NIGHT. I'LL EVEN SLEEP HERE UP HERE IF YOU WANT."

He smiled at that, reaching up to rub at Berry's cheek. "that sounds great. okay, berry, thank you."

Berry nuzzled Daemon's hand. The short skeleton made a promise to himself to hug Daemon every day. "I LOVE YOU PUPPY." He kissed Daemon's hand. "I'LL WALK WITH YOU TO HOWL."

"i love you too. okay." He nuzzled again, then held Berry's hand and stood up to go downstairs. Howl was focused back on his work by now, writing something with an ink pen on parchment like some medieval nobleman penning a letter home from the war.

Berry held Daemon's hand tightly. When they saw Howl, he knocked on the door. "ANGEL."

He glanced up, setting the pen down carefully. "YES?"

He squeezed Daemon's hand. "PLEASE DON'T BE MAD, BUT DAEMON NEEDS A WOUND HEALED AND TO TALK WITH YOU."

Howl looked to Daemon, who hung his head a little and showed the burn mark. Howl sighed quietly and beckoned them both over, pulling off a glove. "I'M NOT ANGRY." His tone said he was disappointed, though.

Daemon drooped a little as he came over and held his arm out. "i'm sorry..."

Berry came into the room with Daemon still holding his other hand. He wanted to support Daemon with this. He had helped Berry with so many of his crises. He loved them both so much; he didn't want to leave until the problem was in the air and they could work on a solution.

Howl carefully laid his hand over the wound, and it began to glow a soft green. Daemon sighed softly, shoulders slumping a little.

"it just... feels nice. warm."

"IF YOU WANT ME TO TOUCH YOU MORE, YOU MUST ASK. WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF I WAS IN NO STATE TO OFFER MY HELP? BEAR IT?"

"yeah..."

"I HAVE BEEN VERY UPTIGHT FOR AS LONG AS WE HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER, THIS IS TRUE. I UNDERSTAND YOU DO THIS BECAUSE IT’S EASIER FOR ME TO FOCUS ON TREATING A WOUND THAN ON THE TOUCH. BUT DO YOU NOT THINK THERE HAS BEEN PROGRESS? WITH MY ACTIONS AND EVEN MY WORDS?”

"there is, i'm sorry. you're doing so good. i know forcing you is bad. i... i won't do it again. i promise."

"DON'T MAKE PROMISES THAT ARE SO DIFFICULT. JUST PROMISE ME YOU WILL TRY."

"okay, master."

Berry smiled. He gently squeezed Daemon's hand and brought it up to kiss the top of his palm. Daemon smiled in response, his soul warming.

Howl let his hand linger for a moment even after the burn was erased, bone gently touching bone. He watched the contact. "...I WANT TO DO BETTER. I WANT TO _BE_ BETTER.” His voice was quieter as he said it, though it never actually dipped below lowercase.

"i want that too."

"I KNOW." He pulled away after another long pause. "WE WILL SEE WHAT MS. CANDY SAYS NEXT WEEK."

Daemon rolled his sleeve back down, letting go of Berry to do it, but took his hand again right after.

Berry smiled at Howl. "YOU’RE DOING VERY WELL, ANGEL. WE'RE VERY PROUD OF YOU, AND YOU SHOULD BE VERY PROUD OF YOURSELF TOO."

Howl looked pleased at that, if not a little flustered. "THANK YOU, KITTEN. I APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT VERY MUCH."

"MAY WE HOLD YOUR HAND?"

"FOR NOW, YES, BUT YOU'RE LEAVING SOON, AREN'T YOU?"

"YES." He took Howl's hand, nestling Daemon's between them. "ONCE RED GETS HERE."

"I SEE." He had offered his right hand, so he then resumed writing with the left. Daemon squeezed gently, nuzzling Berry again. He was happy despite the scolding.

Berry nuzzled back, a soft purr coming from him. A short while later there was a knock at the front door. "THAT'S PROBABLY RED." Berry let his fingers trail over Darmon's hand as he pulled away.

"DON'T ANSWER IT YOURSELF, BERRY." Howl pulled his hand back. Daemon led the way out to the front door. Red was standing there, having knocked from the inside. He smirked.

"sup."

Berry was used to Red and Sans just walking out of random rooms at his brother's house. "HI RED."

Daemon grinned at him. "hiya. you take good care of berry, okay?"

"yes sir." Red saluted with two fingers lazily. "i have two gifts for ya too, blueberry muffin."

"IS ONE THE DEVICE YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT?" He asked curiously while coming up to Red.

"yeah, there's that. but first, i bet you were missing having a phone." He pulled Berry's phone out of his pocket. He couldn't buff out all the scuffs, but the screen was replaced and the buttons all looked new.

Berry took it with a smile. "I WAS. THANK YOU!" He was excited. Now he could text and call everyone when he wanted to. He turned it on, seeing it boot up. It started up perfectly, and he still had all of his pictures and contacts.

“oh, that’s great, berry.” Daemon leaned on the wall, hands stuffed into his pockets. “now you can keep us updated when you’re out today, right?”

“YES, I CAN DO THAT.”

"you're welcome, and here's the device." Red pulled out a watch. "this doesn't just tell time, okay? this is a panic button. i calibrated it for this living room. if you're ever in trouble and nobody can help you, you open this clasp here--" he pointed it out, "--and slam this button inside, okay? it won't go off unless you push this button, so it shouldn't happen by accident. i can only give it enough power for one jump, so if you use it, tell me and i'll recharge it, okay?"

Berry took the watch. This was such a great safety line. He didn't want to be out alone, but it made him feel that some of his autonomy was just handed back to him. A few tears fell down Berry's face as he looked up at Red. "MAY I HUG YOU?"

Red smiled wide, opening his arms. "bring it in, new bro."

Berry tried not to, but practically threw himself at Red. "THANK YOU SO MUCH, BROTHER."

Red hugged him nice and tight, patting Berry's skull gently. "aw, it's no problem. nice break from that fucking thesis, anyway. and we all want ya to feel safe again."

"THANK YOU. THIS HELPS A LOT." When he pulled back, he put it in his right arm. "IS IT WATERPROOF?"

"oh yeah. well, water resistant. it'll be fine in the rain but don't, like, take it swimming, okay?"

"OKAY." Berry became somber. "OH, I NEED TO LET YOU KNOW. THE QUEEN HAS OFFICIALLY DEMANDED THE JUDGE TO TAKE ME IN FOR JUDGEMENT ME THE NEXT TIME HE SEES ME. SO IF ANYTHING HAPPENS WHILE IM WITH YOU, PLEASE DON'T TELEPORT US TO VEX AND STRETCH'S HOUSE."

He pulled back to nod seriously. "yeah, vex told me. don't you worry. i'll bring you back here, or somewhere else safe if need be."

Berry gave a sad smile. "THANK YOU." He pulled back and wiped at his face. He turned to Daemon and held up his wrist to show him the watch. "ISN'T IT COOL? NOW WE DON'T HAVE TO WORRY AS MUCH."

Daemon smiled back at Berry. "yeah, it's very cool! thanks, red."

"don't mention it. knew i had to do something, y'know?"

Berry cradled his wrist, smiling at the watch. "IT REALLY MEANS A LOT, RED." He looked at the tallest skeleton. "I'LL BE BACK IN A FEW HOURS AND I'LL TEXT YOU AND HOWL NOW AND THEN SO YOU KNOW I'M SAFE." Berry went up to Daemon then gently pulled him down and kissed him. "I LOVE YOU BOTH."

"yeah. be safe, don't stray from red's side, okay?" He leaned down and kissed him willingly. "we love you too."

Red wolf-whistled inappropriately.

Berry blushed and ducked his head down behind his bandana at Red's whistle. He tried to ignore how the voice got a little louder. He took a deep breath. "I'LL BE GOOD," he said.

Daemon shoved Red playfully. "you smooch sans."

"i whistle then, too." He winked. "alright, berry, let's get going." He held out his good hand.

Blueberry took his brother-in-law’s hand and waved goodbye to Daemon.

Daemon waved back with a smile, and then Red ported them to the closest outside shopping mall.

"alrighty, what kinda gift do you have in mind? flowers? chocolates? jewelry~?"

Berry worked his bandana between his fingers. "I MADE COOKIES LAST WEEK IN CLASS, BUT THEY GOT DESTROYED," he said sadly. "BUT MY CLASS TONIGHT IS CHOCOLATE MELTS? POURING IN MOLDS ADDING THINGS LIKE EDIBLE GOLD AND DUST. WE ARE ALSO DIPPING IT INTO THINGS. THE TEACHER IS NOT OFFERING CUTE BAGS OR WRAPPING THIS TIME, HOWEVER." He thought a bit more. "SO, I NEED CARDS AND SOME KIND OF WRAPPING AND BOXES?"

"oh, that's too bad..." If he ever saw those assholes again, he'd have a lot of words. and maybe a few blasters to show off. "chocolates are always good. alright, well, definitely need red and gold wrapping paper, 'cause those are the best v-day colors. bet we can find boxes with little squares so each chocolate has its own spot, yeah?" He put his hand back in its pocket. "i, uh... i got sansy a necklace. a real nice one. and i'm gonna be making him a rose apple tart shaped like a heart. hopefully, he'll like it..."

"OH, THAT SOUNDS GREAT." He nodded in agreement. "I'M SURE HE WILL. HE REALLY LIKES APPLES. HE ALWAYS DRINKING APPLE JUICE. AS FOR THE NECKLACE, I'M SURE HE WILL LIKE IT TOO. IS IT A LOCKET?

Red blushed when Berry said that for some reason. "heh, yeah... uh, yeah, it's a locket. the front has a nebula on it, and it even glows in the dark. and inside is a picture of us." He smiled, all soft around the edges.

Berry soul fluttered for them. "HE WILL DEFINITELY LOVE IT." He fidgeted with his bandana as they walked and talked. "ARE YOU INFUSING YOUR MAGIC IN IT?"

Red led the way to the crafts store. "huh, my magic? why?"

"LIKE MY COLLAR." He played with the material lovingly. "IT HAS HOWL'S MAGIC AND I CAN FEEL HIS CARE AND LOVE CLOSE TO ME."

"oh, wow, really? i've never heard of anything like that. but it sounds cool... okay. i'll try it."

"I'M SURE SANS WOULD LOVE IT. THEN HE COULD FEEL YOUR LOVE EVEN AT WORK." He smiled. "HOWL CAN TELL YOU ALL ABOUT IT AND HOW TO DO IT." He saw some cute tissue papers. Blueberry raced a little ahead. "OH, LOOK AT THIS." He pulled out one that had little hearts all over it with gold backing.

"yeah? alright, i'll text him about it." He smiled, then followed quickly to stay close to Berry. "oh, hey, that looks really cute! they'll love it." He poked around, then pointed to a maroon and gold-laced box. "how about this to put them in?"

"OOH THAT'S SO PRETTY." He giggled happily. "I THINK THEY WILL LIKE IT."

"cool, cool. now we just need like... plastic separators for the chocolate. and a card, of course."

Berry looked around the aisle. It was pretty crowded, people and monsters pushing between them trying to grab things, but he tried to stay close to Red. Red seemed to know his way around the baking isle pretty well.

Red held Berry's hand to keep them from getting separated, looking through the different plastic casings. "you know what shapes you'll be making?"

He blushed. "IT SAID HEARTS AND KISSES. THAT'S WHY I WAS GOING TO GIVE THE COOKIES, BUT WE’RE DATEMATES NOW, SO KISSES ARE FINE."

Red grinned. "cool. well, those are different shapes, so square compartments will work. here's, uhh, a light pink? nice?"

"HHHMMM," Berry eyed it critically. "YES, THAT WOULD BE NICE."

"alright." He plucked it. After some more poking around, he nabbed a heart-shaped tart tray for himself. "now a card and we're done, yeah?"

"YES. DO THEY SELL THEM HERE?" He asked.

"not in this particular store, but one still in this strip mall does." He kept hold of Berry's hand as they went to check out.

While in line, Berry pulled out his phone to check the time. "OKAY. LET ME SEND A QUICK TEXT TO HOWL AND DAEMON."He quickly sent a group text to his date mates. [I'M SAFE. LOVE YOU BOTH.]

He got a message back after less than half a minute.

[GLAD TO HEAR IT. WE LOVE YOU TOO.]

Berry smiled softly as he read the message. Then put his phone in his pocket and took Red's hand again.

"everything all good?" He paid for his tray.

Berry nodded, "YES. JUST WANTED TO LET THEM KNOW I'M OKAY AND LOVE THEM." Berry paid for his items.

"heh. you're adorable, berry." He smiled. "we're all gonna have a great v-day this year, huh?"

"YOU TEASE TOO MUCH." Berry blushed and bumped into Red's shoulder lightly. "THIS WILL BE THE BEST. I NEVER THOUGHT I COULD HAVE THIS... IT IS THE FIRST ONE I EVER HAD A DATEMATE TO SHARE IT WITH."

"aw, it's not teasing, i mean it. you're very cute." He noogied Berry gently. "yeah? well, me too, honestly. i never thought i'd ever date anyone. it was a scary idea. but sans..." He sighed quietly. "he makes me feel safe."

Berry giggled at the noogie, "I UNDERSTAND HOW YOU FEEL." His soul felt all light, a fluttery think about his date mates. "HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT TAKING THE NEXT STEP?"

"the next step, which step is that?"

"GETTING MARRIED. " Berry had a dreamy look in his eyelights. "A FAMILY."

"oh." His face turned the color of his namesake, vivid and shiny. "heh, uh... it's a little soon for that... maybe... maybe later on. you now, like... in a few more..." He coughed. "decades."

Berry sighed dejectedly. “I'LL TELL YOU WHAT I TOLD MY BROTHER: DON'T HOLD YOURSELF BACK FROM HAPPINESS. YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN.” Berry laid a hand on his middle. He never thought he would be bad and end up in the Sanitarium. Be made sterile. "BE HAPPY WHILE YOU CAN. THE MEMORIES MIGHT BE THE ONLY THING THAT KEEP YOU GOING WHEN TIMES ARE BAD."

Red rubbed at his cheek, glancing down at Berry's empty belly. He'd almost forgotten that Berry was sterile now. He sighed again. "well, i am happy. very happy. people can date for a long time without getting married and having a kid, and still be happy. families don't all look the same, you know?"

Berry nodded, "THAT'S TRUE. AND IF YOU AND SANS ARE HAPPY, THAT'S ALL THAT MATTERS. BUT THE OPTION IS THERE IF YOU WANT IT."

"yeah... you're right. and maybe it'll happen. but i'm just not ready right now. i've got a lot of other stuff going on. vex is gonna have a kid, i'm working on that thesis, and with all of this law stuff going on..."

Berry stopped and looked Red in the eyelights. "DON'T LET WHATS HAPPENING WITH ME BE AN EXCUSE. AND BABIES LOVE COMPANY. THEY WOULD BE CLOSE ENOUGH IN AGE TO TO BE LIKE SIBLINGS," he said mischievously.

"yeah, well, that's two out of three things, buddy, and the third is waaay more my personal work, ok?" He patted Berry's head.

Berry said, "OKAY."

"yeah. so maybe later. we'll see." He led Berry to a store a few down, where they had all kinds of colorful valentines cards.

Berry smiled at all the cards. He picked them up, reading them all carefully. He had a ‘maybe’ stack in hand quickly.

"there's different kinds. funny ones and serious ones. are you gonna get them one each, or one for both of them?" Red looked at some too.

"I'M THINKING ONE EACH. DAEMON WOULD LIKE A FUNNY ONE. HOWL, I THINK A SERIOUS ONE." He put down a few cards. "DID YOU FIND A GOOD ONE FOR SANS?"

"yeah, you're probably right." He pulled out one of the funny ones. "yeah... this one looks good..."

He smiled. "MAY I READ IT?"

"sure." He handed it over. It was full of bear puns and had a picture of two bears hugging at the end with hearts.

Berry laughed. "I'M SURE HE WILL LOVE IT." He held up a card with a cat on it. "THEY CALL ME THEIR KITTEN." The card said, 'you are puuurfect.' On the inside it said, 'I'm not kitten you.'

"yeah, me too." He plucked the envelope too, then read what Berry picked. He grinned at it. "heh, that's great! you should write in a few extra puns yourself, too."

He chuckled. "OKAY." He held up another card that said 'Happy Valentine's day' and had a wine in a bottle on it. Inside it said, 'Wine puns are always in bad taste.' The other card had a long poem that he thought Howl might like. "I'M NOT SURE BETWEEN THESE TWO.

Red looked them both over, then pointed to the poetic one. "definitely that one."

Berry laughed. "I THOUGHT SO TOO." He put the other card down. "BUT THAT IS PRETTY FUNNY. I THINK WE'RE READY."

"oh yeah, it is." He chuckled. "alrighty, let's go check out. are you guys going anywhere, too?"

"I DON'T KNOW," he admitted sadly. "WITH EVERYTHING THAT HAS HAPPENED THIS WEEK, I ALMOST FORGOT ABOUT VALENTINE'S DAY."

"oh. well... hmm. maybe ask? though, i know your bro is a little bummed this week."

"YEAH, I'LL HAVE TO DO THAT." He gave himself a hug. "YEAH, I REALLY MISS SEEING HIM. WE’VE BEEN TALKING OVER THE PHONE EVERY DAY, BUT IT'S NOT THE SAME."

"yeah... i'll talk to vex, ok? we’ll figure something out."

"THANKS," Berry said gratefully.

"aw, you're welcome." He patted Berry again, then paid for his card. "you wanna do anything else while we're out?"

"WOULD YOU WANT TO GET SOME COFFEE OR TEA?"

"i could go for some tea, yeah. here, gimme your stuff and i'll port it home so we don't have to carry it."

Berry handed his bags over. Red took them and then they disappeared, landing in Berry's room on the bed. Then he ported Berry to the nearest tea shop. He led the way inside and got himself some golden flower tea and a cinnamon roll. The human shopkeeper seemed friendly enough, bored with his job but still polite to all customers.

Berry sat down and ordered some milk tea with honey. He asked Red, "THIS IS A NICE PLACE, DO YOU COME HERE OFTEN?"

"not a whole lot, but i've been here a few times, yeah. they've got pretty good golden flower tea. can't really find it at the bar and grill, you know?"

"YEAH, ITS NICE THAT THEY SERVE IT." Berry looked around to see that there were a fair amount of monsters in there.

"yeah, and even though it's human-run, they're always nice to monsters. it's great to see places like this, where both species get along." He sipped his tea.

As they drank, Berry and Red could hear talk form the tables around them. It appeared that the press conference had made an impact. Days later, people and monsters were still talking about it. On the other side of the partition, some monsters were discussing.

"Do ya think the Swaps really do that to their omegas?" one monster said, a bear that looked Fell by his coloring and sharp claws.

"Howl was our Royal Captain. He wouldn't lie about anything," a Fellswap eagle announced.

"Maybe he was misinformed?” a soft Tale gecko offered. "Could be that he was lied to."

Berry sank in his seat.

Red glanced over at where he heard them talking, keeping his hand curled around his drink. "don't pay them any attention," he whispered.

Berry pulled his drink closer, focusing on the warmth coming through the mug. He tried to ignore them, but he couldn't help but listen.

The Fellswap monster continued, "well, it's only a matter of time until we know the truth either way. The captain is ruthless when he is looking for answers."

Berry felt proud that the obvious Fellswap monster at least believed in Howl to find the truth. Then the sound of drinks and movement filled the air. Someone else was sitting down with them.

"Sully deserved what they got underground. They caused food shortages and the like," an Underswap rabbit monster said. "I was told they lure monsters into bad sex. They’re like the humans' succubi in their stories. You can't escape them once they set their sights on you. That dumb skeleton doesn’t know anything about what happened in our underground. The Queen was keeping everyone safe from sexual predators."

Berry pulled his bandana up higher on his neck to make sure it covered his sully one. The voice fed on his insecurity. ~~All omegas are dirty sexual deviants. You are nothing but a burden…~~

Red was starting to bristle despite his own advice. When the one monster said 'sexual predators' like that, he slammed his good hand on the table, standing up quickly. All the conversation stopped as the other monsters snapped their heads up to look over. The human at the counter jolted and looked between them in concern, nearly dropping a baked good he was handing to another customer. He bit his lip, glancing at the door to the kitchen as if contemplating running to get help. A dangerous alpha aura had filled the air, Red’s powerful presence making itself known as a warning.

Berry jumped at the sudden slam and curled a little in reaction to the alpha aura. He squeezed Howl's collar and could feel the love and the warmth, the nurturing scent of his datemate. He took a deep breath, letting the feeling help him ignore the voice.

"RED, I WANT TO GO HOME, PLEASE."

Just before Red could walk over there against his better judgement and pick a fight, Berry's words hit him. He regained his composure with some difficulty and stopped the pheromones he was giving off so violently.

"yeah, ok, blue."

He used the other half of Berry's name, knowing Howl had only used 'Berry' in his speech. At Red's agreement, Berry got up, leaving the tea. He wasn't in the mood to drink it now. His head was bowed and shoulders hunched over, trying to look smaller.

Red grabbed Berry's tea with an extra hand and used another to pick up his own. Before he left, he used a third floating magic hand to flip off the ignorant swap monster who'd said that about omegas, prompting an offended, “rude!” from the bunny in question. Then he slung the arm of his good hand around Berry's shoulders and ported them back to Howl and Daemon's living room.

Berry didn't pay attention to Red's magic hands. He did, however, push himself into the warmth of Red's jacket.


	15. Everyone Wants to be Loved, Loved in Their Own Way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which two dogs bark at each other and two kittens snuggle their loved ones.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! welcome back! It's the start of V-day! I hope you like it. <3 Next chapter going to be intense. so make sure to subscribe to the story or GetMcDunkedOn or myself to get updates in your mail box. - Diyami
> 
> T MINUS ONE WEEK TO PLOT - GetMcDunkedOn

When Berry and Red arrived in the living room, Berry looked around to see if either of his datemates were there. He really wanted to cuddle with Daemon or hold Howl's hand. They were good at making the voice be quiet. Unfortunately, they didn't seem to be in the living room. Howl's door was slightly ajar, and there was some giggling inside.

Red let go and put Berry's tea on the table. "don't worry about _bitches_ like them, berry. they're not worth shit. you're amazing and you've got two cool datemates. that's what's important."

Berry nodded at Red's reassurance. He mumbled, "THANK YOU." Then, with more confidence, he said, "THEY ARE AMAZING AND SO IS MY FAMILY." He hugged Red.

"yeah, exactly." He hugged Berry nice and tight. "we're all here for ya, okay? you go snuggle the shit out of them or something." He pressed his teeth to Berry's forehead before pulling back. "see you around." He waved and then ported away, leaving Berry's tea.

Berry wiped his sockets, which burned with unshed tears, and looked at the tea. He had lost his appetite, grimacing as he looked at it. He was pretty sure that if he offered it to Daemon or Howl, they would make him drink it. A sigh escaped him; he wasn't in the mood to be forced to eat. His magic cramped just thinking about. Gingerly, he took the cup to the fridge and quickly hid it behind some stuff in the back. He would not let tea ruin the cuddle time he wanted.

He called out once he was back in the living room, “HOWL, DAEMON, I'M BACK."

"WELCOME BACK, BERRY." The two of them came out of the office, both looking happy. But their smiles faded some as they saw Berry's upset.

"what happened, honey?"

"WE OVERHEARD SOME MONSTERS TALKING ABOUT THE PRESS CONFERENCE." Berry held his arms out and his jaw quivered as he said, "I COULD USE SOME CUDDLES AND HAND HOLDING, PLEASE."

"oh no, they were being mean about it?" Daemon hugged him immediately. Howl sat down on the couch and pulled off a glove to hold out his hand.

"DON'T PAY THEM ANY MIND."

Berry cuddled into Daemon and took Howl's hand. "THEY WEREN'T TALKING TO US, BUT WE OVERHEARD THEM. IT WAS A MIXED BUNCH. THE FELL MONSTER WAS QUESTIONING IF I LIED TO YOU. THE FELLSWAP SAID THAT YOU WOULD GET TO THE BOTTOM OF IT. BUT THE UNDERSWAP MONSTER..." He cuddled more and squeezed Howl's hand. "HE SAID SULLY DESERVED WHAT WE GOT." He took a deep breath of the warm smoky scent of Daemon's jacket and let it out slowly. It helped him feel safe and kept the voice from becoming loud again.

Howl held on, squeezing back gently, and Daemon sat down with Berry in his lap. "he's wrong," he said firmly.

"INDEED. AND I _WILL_ GET TO THE BOTTOM OF IT ALL. WE HAVE ALREADY MADE GREAT PROGRESS. THERE ARE SETBACKS, OF COURSE, BUT I AM CONFIDENT."

Berry nodded, resting his head on Daemon's chest. "YOU HAVE DONE SO MUCH ALREADY AND I'M THANKFUL." He stroked his hand over Howl's knuckles. "I'M SO LUCKY HAVING BOTH OF YOU IN MY LIFE."

"YOU DON'T HAVE TO THANK US, WE ARE THRILLED TO HELP YOU AND ALL SULLY. WE LOVE YOU."

"mhm. and nobody should be treated that way. nobody." Daemon started to pet Berry's skull. "did you get everything you wanted?"

Berry snuggled into Daemon and relaxed a bit at their reassurance. "YES. I DID." He asked curiously, "WHAT WERE YOU TWO GIGGLING ABOUT?"

"oh, i was laughing at some reports from the guards."

"BRATTY AND CATTY ARE ALWAYS A HANDFUL," Howl sighed. "THEY DON'T GET A LOT DONE, EITHER. BUT THEY DO GREAT WHEN IT COUNTS."

Berry smiled. "IT'S GOOD THEY ARE DEPENDABLE." 

"IT IS." He gently rubbed back.  
kept rubbing Howl's hand a bit before working up the courage to ask, "ARE WE DOING ANYTHING SPECIAL FOR VALENTINE'S DAY?"

"I HAD A FEW IDEAS, YES. I HADN'T DECIDED WHICH ONE TO GO WITH. PERHAPS ANYTHING PUBLIC IS NOT THE BEST OPTION... IS THERE SOMETHING IN PARTICULAR YOU WOULD LIKE TO DO?"

"I'M HAPPY SPENDING IT WITH YOU TWO, BUT," Berry gave a loving squeeze. "SEEING STRETCH WOULD WONDERFUL, BUT NOT POSSIBLE."

"HMM, I SEE. WELL... PERHAPS I CAN TALK TO HIM AND VEX. WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO FIGURE SOMETHING OUT."

Blueberry smiled at that. It was a nice thought. "THANK YOU FOR TRYING, ANGEL." Berry snuggled into Daemon warmth. "DID YOU TWO WANT TO WATCH SOME TV AND KNIT?" He asked hopefully.

"YES, THAT SOUNDS LOVELY. JUST FOR A LITTLE WHILE, UNTIL YOU HAVE TO PREPARE FOR YOUR CLASS." He turned on the TV. Daemon hummed happily and snuggled up in return. "glad we can make you feel better."

Berry nuzzled happily into Daemon. He was grateful for their love. He leaned up and gave him Daemon a kiss, and Daemon kissed back. They enjoyed watching TV and knitting until it was time to get ready.

* * *

Stretch was lying on the bed, being a lump. He was depressed. Not knowing when he would see or hold his brother, it reminded him of the time… the time Berry went out for food and didn’t come back. That ache in his chest when he’d wondered when he would again see his brother that was lost to him. He tried not to dwell on the feeling. He really did. He ~~hoped~~ _knew_ it wasn’t going to be as long before he could see and hold his brother, but the only escape from the haunted feeling of the past was talking with Blueberry on the phone or being with Vex. Whom unfortunately had to work during the day.

Stretch wiped at his sockets and held his enormous belly, as his little souling did flips-flops in worry at their carrier’s distress.

Vex made his best lasagna tonight, and he brought it up to Stretch in bed on a tray instead of making him come down to the kitchen. He was very worried about his husband. Stretch was only growing more despondent in time, and not only did that concern him regarding the souling’s health, he hated seeing his loved one so depressed. He had experience dealing with Red’s depression, in a way, but it was different with a lover. Very different. He set the tray down gently. "LOVE? I HAVE DINNER FOR YOU."

Stretch rolled over and untangled himself from his nest of blankets. "hey." he smiled sadly. "thanks, love. how was work?"

"OH, IT WAS GOOD. MOSTLY. I HAD TO GIVE A FUTURE PRIMA DONNA A LECTURE ON EATING ENOUGH, WHICH IS ALWAYS STRESSFUL, BUT I THINK I GOT THROUGH TO HER. ANOREXIA IS RAMPANT IN THE INDUSTRY." He brought the tray closer.

"i hope she listens to you." He picked at his food. 

"HOPEFULLY, YES. I HAVE A PERSONAL STORY I CAN USE IN SUCH SITUATIONS. HOW IS THE BABY? HAVE YOU GOTTEN OUT OF BED YET TODAY?"

"we got up a bit when berry called. he made me walk around the house while talking to him. he said the baby and i need exercise."

He sat down next to Stretch. "THAT'S GOOD. PLEASE EAT, LOVE? YOU NEED YOUR STRENGTH."

Stretch didn’t really feel like eating, and the baby being anxious made him nauseous, but he knew Vex was right and tried to eat slowly. After a few bits he relented and held out his arms, wanting his mate to hold him. "i really miss berry and his hugs."

Vex put his arms around his husband, holding him close but trying not to obstruct his way to the dinner. "I KNOW, STRETCH, I'M SORRY. IT MUST BE SO DIFFICULT. I DON'T KNOW WHAT I'D DO IF I COULDN'T SEE RED..."

The pregnant monster held his mate close. "berry has to be feeling isolated too. he was hurt right before all this happened. we both need our families." He was so mad at the Queen. The anger cut through his melancholy, making his worries come spilling out. "and we can't have family game night with both of us there, and i’m sure berry won’t go if he thinks it's keeping me away." 

Vex thought about that, absently rubbing Stretch's back. "RIGHT... FAMILY GAME NIGHTS AREN'T THE SAME WITHOUT BOTH OF YOU..." 

The pregnant skeleton frowned, trying to puzzle out a solution. "maybe i can talk him into taking turns or something."

"HE WOULD NEVER WANT TO LEAVE YOU OUT OF IT,” Vex sighed. “THERE MUST BE A LOOPHOLE... WHAT WERE THE QUEEN'S EXACT WORDS ON THE ORDER?"

Stretch rubbed his chest over his soul, where the words felt branded. "the next time you see berry, you are to bring him in for judgement."

"SEE, HMM?" He kept stroking Stretch’s back. After a moment, his sockets went wide, and he smirked. "WELL, THAT'S EASY, THEN! ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS NOT 'SEE' HIM!" 

Stretch was confused for a moment before he saw the loophole as well. He squeezed Vex happily and gave him a deep kiss. The souling could feel their parent’s happiness and swam around excitedly. "you're so smart, love."

"I KNOW, I'M THE BEST." He laughed to himself as he dialed up Howl.

* * *

Berry had gone into his room a while ago, as he needed to get ready for class. Now he sat at the foot of his bed. His blue bag had his notepad and pencils in it. He twisted the strap in his hand nervously. It was almost time for class. He was both scared and excited. 

Berry promised himself to be brave. He was going to do this and make them something to show his love and appreciation for his datemates. He carefully kept his thoughts away from what had happened last week.

There was a gentle knock at the door. "berry," Daemon called out softly, "you ready to go?"

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly before he called out, "YES. I'M COMING." He stood up, put his bag over his shoulder and tried to put on a smile. Then he opened the door. "HI PUPPY."

"hiya, berry." Daemon leaned in and kissed the shorter skeleton briefly. "are you excited?" He led the way out towards the door.

That wonderful action brightened his smile. "I AM. THANK YOU FOR TAKING ME." He took his tall datemate's hand and laced their fingers.

"that's good! yeah, of course."

"WE'RE BOTH COMING, NATURALLY." Howl clipped the leash onto Daemon's collar. "DO YOU WANT US IN THE ROOM OR TO WAIT IN THE HALL?"

Berry squeezed Daemon's hand. He didn't want to give away what he was hoping to make for them. "COULD YOU... WAIT OUTSIDE?" He hoped they didn't take it wrong.

"IF THAT'S WHAT YOU'D LIKE, THAT'S NOT A PROBLEM, MY DEAR KITTEN."

Berry flushed a bright blue. He pulled his bandana up, trying to hide a bit.

"yeah, we don't mind," Daemon said and gave another gentle kiss to Berry. The tender kiss wooed him and he stumbled into Daemon's side. Daemon caught him, a little concerned but partly amused. "you alright?"

"YES." He squeezed the bandana again. Then he took a deep breath and tried to calm down.

"alright, good. ready, master?"

"YES."

Daemon ported them there, still cradling Berry. Berry felt the brief pull and pop as they appeared in the building. His soul beat faster and he kept his head buried in Daemon's side, taking in a deep calming breath of the smoky, spicy barbecue scent of Daemon's jacket. He let the smell consume him. Daemon and Howl were here. "IT'S OKAY," he mumbled before pulling up to see the hallway. He was happy not to be outside. He carefully kept his mind focused on his task: Class.

He squeezed his bandana. "THE CLASS IS AN HOUR AND THERE’S VENDING MACHINES DOWN THE HALL, AND SOME BENCHES AND STUFF IF YOU WANT TO SIT."

"alright, we'll be there, then, okay? just yell if you need us."

"WE'LL COME RUNNING," Howl agreed.

Berry nodded. "ALRIGHT." He gave them a small wave. "LOVE YOU," he told them both as he went through the door and took his normal spot.

* * *

Thirty minutes passed. Monsters and humans came and went for other activities. Then, from down a hall, Daemon and Howl could hear some monsters talking.

"don't ssssssmell him around here,” one hissy voice said. 

"There's more rooms to check," said a gruff voice.

"You really think it dumb enough to come back here?" a third asked.

By the time Daemon heard the first voice, he was up and walking towards the door to the cooking class, guarding it. Howl followed suit, his expression becoming very tight.

"Ssssmells like bones," the snake monster said as he turned the corner. Prat was followed closely by Tal and Cory turning the corner. They were all dressed in normal clothes instead of their guard uniforms. They stopped dead in their tracks upon seeing the two skeletons from the press conference.

Howl folded his arms, standing as straight as he could. He was holding Daemon's leash tightly. "YOU HAVE NO BUSINESS HERE."

Cory pushed his way past the others. "Well now, I would argue against that. We’re doing a public service."

"We need to clean up some trash," Tal added as Prat snaked his way back down the hallway a bit, giving the others a bit more room.

"OH, CLEANING UP THE TRASH? WHY, WHAT A GOOD IDEA... PUPPY?"

Daemon stepped forward and cracked his knuckles, his pupils flaring up with fire. "understood, master."

Cory growled lowly, his fangs exposed and his ears pulled back menacingly. "You don't scare us, you overgrown chew toy."

Tal puffed his feathers up, making himself look bigger. "You're outnumbered."

The snake monster hissed at them.

Daemon smirked a little, eyelights flashing brighter. "you're right. i'm outnumbered. that's why this is self-defense. why don't we step outside, boys?"

Tal took a step back at Daemon's words. He looked around at the small crowd that had gathered. Gaster had told them to bring him the Sully without a scene. 

Cory growled deeply. "Bring it. It ain't self defense if you're picking the fight."

Daemon remained right in front of the door. "i'm not picking a fight with anyone. you want to get past me? hit me."

"Come on, Cory," Tal said and grabbed his arm.

The wolf monster snapped his fangs, making Tal jump and pull hack.

Prat hissed, "let'sssss go,” more urgently.

Cory finally noticed the monsters and humans crowding around. He tried to calm himself. Gaster would be pissed if they got arrested. With the pressure from the press conference, the lab was under a spotlight. This recall was supposed to be on the down-low. If they got the Sully to a secured location, then nothing more would proceed. He sneered at the skeletons, keeping him from taking the Sully. He said just low enough for Daemon and Howl to hear, "have fun fucking the little slut for now." With that, he turned to leave.

Daemon's pupils flared up brighter, a feral snarl escaping him. He knew the jab was only meant to provoke him, but that didn’t mean it didn’t work. He started to lunge, but before he got more than a foot forward, Howl yanked on the leash. "HEEL," he said calmly.

Daemon stumbled back, cutting off a quiet yelp, but it calmed the bloodlust that had flared up. He gripped the collar around his neck, the flaring dying back down until his pupils were clear white again.

"i'm sorry, master," he said when they were gone.

"DON'T BE." Howl's own pupils were ice. "THEY WOULD DESERVE IT AND MORE, BUT WE PLAY BY THE RULES."

"yes, you're right." He slouched, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "show's over, shoo," he added to the small crowd. They started to disperse reluctantly, some chatter arising about the confrontation.

The tension gradually eased as they waited. By the time Berry came out, the last of the tension in their postures had faded. Berry’s bag was full of sweet treats for tomorrow. He had a big smile on his face.

Berry asked, “did anything happen?”

Daemon smiled at him sweetly. "nothing, sweetie, we're alright."

"YES, EVERYTHING IS AS EXPECTED. WHAT DID YOU MAKE?"

Berry gripped his bag tightly. "IT'S A SURPRISE, SILLY. I WILL NOT SPILL THE BEANS." His face colored as magic dusted his checks. "YOU'LL SEE TOMORROW. "

"AH, IS THAT SO?" Howl smiled. "A GIFT FOR US, THEN? I CAN HARDLY WAIT. SHALL WE?"

"mhm! don't worry, berry, we have a gift for you too~"

Berry's soul felt like it was going to burst with happiness. "I CAN'T WAIT." He took Daemon's hand into his and nuzzled it lightly.

* * *

Red was not an outstanding cook, but he was a great baker. The garlic and cheddar drop biscuits he'd made looked amazing, but the eggs? ...Passable, at least. Wearing nothing but a light red apron covering his bare bones, he set the tray down next to the bed and crawled on top of Sans to kiss him, but a very adorable dark blue cat with light speckles was currently sleeping on his boyfriend's face. Red laughed and picked up the small bundle of fur; his cat had been sleeping on his face since they were underground, and it was precious that he’d taken to Sans just as well. “hey there, catpernicus.” Cat meowed at him in that gentle manner he had, the soft baby. Red gave him a pet before setting him down on the carpet.

Sans let out a loud snore as he resettled himself free from the feline, his mouth slightly parted. Red settled on top of the sleeping skeleton properly and lapped against slightly parted teeth. "sansy, wakey wakey~"

Sans moaned into Red as he pressed their bones together, sockets blinking open. When Red pulled back, Sans said sleepily, "you're going to spoil me getting woken up like this. oh wait, i’m already spoiled.” He pulled him back down for another kiss and ground his knee between Red’s legs.

Red laughed into the kiss, leaning in closer and pressing his pelvis to Sans's knee with a return groan. "fuck, sweetheart, it ain't spoilin' if you're so good to me back," he mumbled into Sans's mouth. His magic was hot and primed, instantly pooling

Sans traced his hand down Red's spine. He slowly pet his way down Red's vertebrae, stroking the magic between each. "i know a good thing when i see one. you, hot stuff, definitely deserve to be spoiled."

He shivered a little at the stroking, moaning again. "heh, you're precious. i made ya breakfast, just don't judge me on the eggs, ok?" He forced himself to pull away despite the demands of his body, bringing over the tray. "i, uh, i've got you a gift when you're done eating."

Sans smiled and kissed him and teased him, "how sweet of you redy. is today special?"

"ha ha. you're such a funny bone." He pointed to one of the biscuits. "garlic and cheddar. damn restaurant quality, if i do say so myself."

"anything you make is like, the food of the gods." He took a bite of the eggs. "the real question is, which god was your muse today?"

He blushed at that. "aw, geez, sansy. well, if i had to pick one, i'm partial to hephaestus, i guess. god of the forge and machines. his trouble’s a foot and mine’s a hand, but details.”

Sans winked slyly. "are you calling me your aphrodite?" He bit into a roll and moaned. "because this is definitely some ambrosia."

"you're as sexy as she is, that's for sure." He winked back, then chuckled, his voice growing warm. "glad you like 'em, sweetheart." He stole half of one. He'd eaten bites here and there while cooking, but he couldn't help a bit of indulgence.

"careful, words like that got people turned into monsters." He fed some eggs to Red. "they might turn me human out of spite."

He ate from Sans's spoon willingly. "aw, i'd love you just as much even if you were human, baby. a little godly ire couldn't tear me away."

Sans chuckled and gave him a kiss. "good, because... i'm never going to give you up. never going to let you down." He took the last few bites, laughing. "delicious, sweetheart. thank ya."

"oh my god, sansy." He snorted. "can't believe you'd rickroll me on v-day. that's the most romantic thing ever, i’m officially swooned." He returned the kiss. "glad you liked it. you want your gift now?"

"sure, babe, and i'll give you yours.”

"alright." Red held out his hand and a small box appeared, all wrapped up in a neat bow. "we open at the same time?"

Sans smiled. "sure but mine's a little heavy." He ported a big wrapped box and set it on the bed. Papyrus obviously wrapped it with how beautiful it looked.

"oh yeah?" He looked at the big box in surprise. "oh man, what is this?" He hefted it up with some effort. Catpernicus chose that moment to leap back up, meowing, and Red had to pause and give the baby another few pets. “you wanna be part of v-day, baby? you wanna see the gifts? ok, you can see the gifts.” Sans waited patiently, amused, until Red turned back to his gift. "alright, on three, okay? one... two... three."

Sans opened his paper and found the jewelry box. He opened it carefully to see a beautiful locket. When he touched the locket to open it, he was shocked. Red's love and affection poured out of it and into him, warm and powerful. It brought tears to his sockets. He opened it to find a picture of Red and him arm in arm in the center of a galaxy backdrop. He looked up at Red, hoping he liked his gift too.

Red pushed the paper to his gift aside after tearing it up, and looked at the box within, the images printed on it. It was an expensive stand mixer, one of the few things missing from his collection of baking supplies. Whisking by hand was difficult sometimes, even with the help of extra magic hands. The fanciness made him whistle and grin, pleased. "wow... this looks so quality!”

"so do ya like it?" Sans asked, feeling a little self-conscious. He had looked at all the different reviews online to find the best one for Red. He had been working on the side, online as a proofreader, to afford this for Red. "i know it gets pretty tiring to mix by hand. it has the fancy paddle for mixing, whisking, and making dough. it’s also steady, so it won't fall over if you want to use just one hand scraping the side. the cord is long so you could put it anywhere you need, and it all comes apart easy to wash.”

"i love it, sansy. i could use this today for what i'm making for game night." He put it aside and leaned in to kiss Sans softly. "you, um, like the locket? it's the, um... the ring nebula. i-i mean, it's not an actual ring, i'm not just- because, you know, i haven't- um. it's just, it's the ring nebula." His voice got nervous as he rambled, struggling to try to convey what he’d intended with buying this one in particular.

Sans squeezed the locket and kissed him back. "sweetheart, it's stellar." He felt all the love and warmth in the locket, and it told him more than words could about Red's feelings. "lunar or later, you'll be ready. i'm a patient monster, and until then this is my promise ring." He pushed his datemate down onto the bed, picking up where they left off this morning. Grinding his knee into Red's pelvis and peppering him with kisses.

He blushed but laughed at the puns. "oh my god, sansy." He let himself be pushed down and wrapped his arms around his datemate, moaning softly. "mmm, fuck... i love you so damn much." The heat from his magic came back with a vengeance, a thick member dropping into place. Before he could really focus on that, though, he looked over to Cat batting at the wrapping paper happily. “babies go outside for fuck.” He used a few magic hands to scoop the kitty up and gently deposit him outside the room, then turned his full attention to his datemate.

Sans’s own magic was pooling, wanting form, but he held it back. His voice was low and throaty as he whispered next to his lover's skull, "what do you want today?"

"ride me, baby," he begged, scratching gently down Sans's spine. "i wanna feel you clench around me."

"as you wish, my starshine." He let his magic fall into place. His deep blue pussy was already slick from the love and affection he felt from his gift. Sans kissed his lover deeply. Slowly, he worked his hands down Red to pull up the apron he was wearing. Red knew how much Sans loved it when he was wearing just that. It was one of his favorite fantasies to play out.

Even the vanilla smell of Sans made Red that much more aroused. He feasted his eyes, licking his teeth a little, and arched up his back as Sans pulled up the apron. It wasn't too cutesy, but it was definitely sexy, and he had no problem wearing it and nothing else to cover his bones. Right now, though, it was just a few seconds more of an obstacle, and he was impatient.

Sans cupped the bright red length, shimmering with faint yellow speckles, giving him a loving squeeze before stroking him a few times. Red groaned, sockets fluttering a little. "fuck, sweetheart, you drive me crazy," he said breathlessly. "please..." He didn't need to really beg, though he was prepared to, because Sans then aligned himself, slowly sliding down his mate's thick cock. He gasped as Red opened him up and stretched his magic taut. Once he was fully seated, he moaned loudly and clenched around Red's magic. Red moaned back, louder, his good hand gripping at Sans’s hip. “oh, fuck!”

Sans loved seeing that wild look in Red's eyelights. The want and need for him. He picked himself up and slid down slowly. "i love you, red." He rode his love long and slow, feeling every inch, pulling and tugging on his magic with blinding satisfaction. He wanted to give Red a good show. Sans raked his hands down Red’s ribs and leaned back a bit, knowing that at this angle, his glowing soul would be on display for his love.

Honestly, Red expected it fast and rough, but going slow and romantic was a great idea on Valentine's day. He blushed at the declaration of love, and especially at seeing Sans's soul right there, so obvious to him. For him. It made him throb again inside of Sans, and he gripped his lover all the more desperately. "i love you too, sans, fuck... ghh, you're so good, you feel so good." He prided himself on his stamina, he could go a _while._ And multiple times on top of that. He wanted it to last, clinging to the edge and savoring the unbearably good feeling. If they could just stay in bed together forever, he'd be so content.

Sans moaned deep, passion pooling deep within him. "stars, you're so deep at this angle." He sped up, chasing the high. He looked down at Red’s body, his eyelights hood as he told his lover, "i expect you to fully wreck me today, starshine. so don't worry. i got more healing cream."

Red blushed darker, clawing at Sans's ribs, rubbing all the most sensitive places. "don't you worry, baby, i'm gonna rock your world."

Sans expelled his breath in a rush when a boney and a few magic hands explored all those spots. "red...!"

"yeah, fuck, c'mon, a little harder? i'm getting close." He rolled his hips up, groaning again.

Red cock was hitting all the right places, the angle was maddening, and feeling Red’s loving touches in him as well as on him was making him breathless. Sans’s soul was bright in his chest. He couldn’t hold off anymore. "red!" he called out as the tension in him snapped and he clamped down from the bliss that crashed through him.

Feeling Sans clench around him, Red gripped Sans and pulled him up and off quickly. Then he came hard too, gasping out his datemate's name as warm, apple-scented cum spilled all over Sans's lap. Not inside, too risky.

Sans gave a groan as his body clamped down on nothing. "fuck!" His body was trying to milk a partner that wasn't there. He crawled up Red's chest to lie on him as he came down from his high. His own release mixed with the apple as his slick dripped down his thighs. "fuck, red." He reached between them, gathering some of the essence together. He made sure Red was looking at him as he licked the red apple cum that was marked with his own blue vanilla off one of his phalanges. "you're a tasty treat."

Red panted softly as he wrapped his arms around his lover, the buzz of pleasure settling into lovely afterglow. He watched Sans lick up his cum with a smirk. "fuck yeah i am. you are too, though." He deliberately rubbed along Sans's magic to gather up some wetness and lick his own fingers clean.

Sans shivered as Red traced down his sensitive magic. He blushed as his lover licked up the blue cum. Only half teasing, he laughed, "i can't think of a better dessert than us."

"heh, right?" He licked his teeth. "though, i am gonna make somethin' extra special for tonight. but don't you worry, i'll wear you out first." He flipped them over with an effortless motion.

"i live in bated breath for tonight." He huffed as Red flipped them. "sound like a splendid plan." he pulled Red down into a kiss.

"hehehe. it's gonna be perfect." He kissed Sans nice and deep, then trailed his teeth down until his tongue flicked out between Sans's legs.

Sans legs went weak as Red's talented tongue teased him. "Hmmm," he moaned. He spread his legs wider for him, and Red ate him out with intensity and delight.

* * *

Berry woke up in the warm embrace of Daemon's arms. He ran his fingers along the emerald green ecto flesh exposed by Daemon’s crop top absently. "ALWAYS SO WARM," he said happily to himself as he cuddled into the loving embrace and gently kneaded the magic like the kitten his nickname claimed to be.

Daemon purred sleepily, rubbing a hand along Berry's back. "morning, sweetie... did you sleep okay?"

"BETTER THAN OKAY. YOU ARE THE MOST COMFORTABLE PILLOW. I FEEL SO WARM AND SAFE." A quiet purr worked its way out of him. "DID YOU SLEEP ALRIGHT?"

"i'm glad to hear it." He scratched gently, like Berry really was a cat. "mhm, i slept great. i always sleep better snuggling with someone." He stretched a little. "bet howl's coming in any second with breakfast."

Berry let the feeling of Daemon touching him was through him happily. Then he asked excitedly, "I WONDER WHAT OUR ANGEL MADE TODAY?"

"he usually really goes all out on valentine's day," Daemon said conspiratorially. And just then, there was a knock on the door. Howl came in, carefully balancing a loaded tray. There was nutella and strawberry French toast in the shape of hearts, omelettes, heart-shaped sausage patties, and cinnamon rolls, along with a glass of something pink for each of them.

"GOOD MORNING, MY LOVES."

Berry looked at Howl in awe and blushed. "GOOD MORNING." He started looking at all the food. "WOW! IT’s SO PRETTY. THANK YOU MY ANGEL."

"looks so good, master, thank you."

"YOU'RE BOTH QUITE WELCOME. I'M HAPPY TO PROVIDE FOR MY PUPPY AND MY KITTEN." He set down the tray and offered them a glass each. "STRAWBERRY MIMOSAS. ONLY A BIT OF ALCOHOL, FOR THE TASTE, OF COURSE." There was even some sugar around each rim and a full strawberry as a garnish.

Berry took one and sat on the floor next to Daemon, then took a sip of the drink. It was tasty and sweet, the alcoholic kick very mild.

Howl settled across from them, gesturing to the whole spread of food. "PLEASE ENJOY."

Berry wasn't sure where to start. It all looked so good and there was so much. It was a little overwhelming. He took a piece of French toast. He would wait until they ate their fill and eat some more.

Daemon gently prodded him when that was all he took. "try a little of everything? please?"

Berry's tummy cramped at the idea. He promised himself to eat and make them happy. It was such a small thing they asked from him, and they gave him so much. 'STOP BEING A FUSSY BABYBONES,' he scolded himself. He didn't want to disappoint them. "OKAY." He took a little of everything and put it on his plate reluctantly. 

Daemon and Howl both also started to eat. Daemon sighed happily. "it all tastes so good, master, thank you so much."

"NOTHING BUT THE BEST FOR MY LOVES." Howl looked as proud as a peacock.

Berry smiled and blushed. "IT’S ALL VERY GOOD THANK YOU, LOVE." He went around his plate and ate a bit of everything, ending back on the toast. "AND THIS FRENCH TOAST IS AMAZING. CREAMY IN THE CENTER AND FIRM ON THE OUTSIDE." It was so sweet and creamy in the center and he loved it. He felt less pressure to eat as they talked, making it easier to finish what was on his plate. Before he knew it, he had eaten all the delicious food.

"YOU'RE WELCOME." Howl ate his own share with all the grace and politeness as usual, even when sitting on the floor. They both looked very proud when Berry cleared off his place. While Howl was cleaning up afterwards, Daemon jumped up and went to his closet.

"i'm gonna grab your gifts, no peeking!"

Berry's soul felt light and happy at Daemon's excitement. "ALRIGHT." He covered his eyes.

Howl quickly took away the tray and plates, then came back with two wrapped gifts behind his back. He also looked away as Daemon pulled out a few things.

"okay, i've got them! who should go first?"

"LET ME GO GET MINE TOO." Berry left the room and quickly went to go get his. He came back with his blue school pack, the gifts hidden inside. He sat back down, smiling happily. "YOU MADE US A WONDERFUL BREAKFAST, HOWL. YOU SHOULD GET YOUR GIFTS FRIST."

"ME? OH, VERY WELL."

Daemon beamed and handed over a wrapped gift. Howl delicately opened it, not ripping the paper even the slightest. Inside was a box of a set of six new wine glasses, each one with a different intricate flower painted on the outside by hand. Howl made a pleased noise as he examined the picture of them, then opened the box and pulled out the one with a violet.

"THESE ARE STUNNING! VERY LUXURIOUS. THANK YOU, PUPPY."

"you're welcome!"

Berry held his bag, watching Howl opening the package. "WOWIE," he said. He played with the flap on his bag. Then he felt a little silly. He made Daemon and Howl the same thing. "UM... I THINK MAYBE YOU SHOULD BOTH OPEN MINE AT THE SAME TIME."

"IF THAT'S WHAT YOU WISH, BERRY, THEN THAT IS FINE. DAEMON CAN OPEN HIS GIFT FROM ME NEXT." He put the glass back carefully and then put the box aside. He then held out a present wrapped in dark green, which Daemon took and tore open like a kid on Christmas. It was a new collar; fresh, crisp leather, gleaming golden spikes. "YOUR OLD ONE WAS GETTING A BIT WORN. I ALREADY PUT MY INTENT INTO IT."

Daemon made a delighted sound. "may i, then?"

"GO AHEAD."

He pulled off the old one to put aside, then clipped the new one around his neck and rubbed at it a little with a happy sigh. "it feels great."

"I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT."

"IT LOOKS WONDERFUL, DAEMON." Berry reached into his bag and pulled out two wrapped boxes, the cards taped to each one, and handed one each to Howl and Daemon. "I HOPE YOU LIKE IT."

They each took one and opened them, Howl still neatly, Daemon with the same eagerness.

Inside the box was chocolates. There were heart shapes with the words, 'I ❤️ U' on them and X and O shapes for hugs and kisses. Howl's was dark chocolate with almonds, and Daemon's was milk chocolate. "I LEARNED HOW TO MELT AND MOLD CHOCOLATE THIS WEEK."

They both looked over the chocolate with surprise and delight.

"oh, wow, berry, you _made_ these?"

"THESE LOOK VERY WELL MADE. THE SHAPES ARE PERFECT, AND THE WORDS ARE VERY SWEET. I'M VERY IMPRESSED."

"so cool, thank you!" Daemon hugged him tightly while Howl delicately plucked an O to taste it. He made a pleased sound. It was good.

Berry beamed with pride. "THANK YOU." He hugged Daemon tight too. "I'M SO GLAD YOU BOTH LIKE THEM."

"we love them!"

"WE DO. BERRY, THIS IS DELICIOUS." Howl closed his box again. "I WILL MAKE THESE LAST."

"mhm, me too!" He kissed Berry's cheek and tried one of his own. "mmm!"

Berry eyelights shined stars. "I HOPE YOU LIKE THE CARDS TOO. I LOVE YOU BOTH."

"YES, OF COURSE. WE LOVE YOU TOO." He opened his card to read it, and Daemon did the same.

Berry sat on Daemon's laps while they read the cards. He was so happy they loved the gifts.  
Daemon's was the one with the cut cat puns he’d found, and Berry had taken Red's suggestion and added some more puns to it. Howl's has a beautiful sunset picnic basket with cheese and wine laying out on a blanket. Inside was a pretty poem about love, heartfelt and passionate.

Daemon grinned at his card and the puns, snickering at the clever ones. Howl was appropriately flattered by his formal one. He reached over and took Berry's hand to kiss it gently.

"VERY THOUGHTFUL, BERRY. THANK YOU. WOULD YOU LIKE YOUR GIFTS NOW?"

Berry's soul swooned as he got his first kiss from Howl. "YEAH," he said dreamily.

He smiled and squeezed gently before letting go. Then he held out a gift wrapped in a lovely blue.

Berry took the package. It was so pretty, just the perfect shape of blue. He gently pulled the tape off and unwrapped it. Howl looked pleased that he was opening it delicately. Inside was a pair of soft knitted gloves, just as warm and full of love as the bandana was.

"OOOH, OOH, HOWL, THEY’RE AMAZING!" He gently took them out and felt the soft material. They were as soft as Howl’s own gloves. The love and warmth that was in them was amazing. "THANK YOU, ANGEL." He pulled them on, marveling at the feeling.

"I'M GLAD YOU LIKE THEM, I MADE THEM THIS PAST WEEK. THEY'RE VERY WELL MADE AND DURABLE, THEY SHOULD LAST A WHILE."

“I LOVE THEM!” He felt all warm as he flexed his fingers. His eyelights morphed into heart shapes. It was like Howl was a barricade between him and the things he touched, only letting the ‘good’ touch him.

"GOOD."

"now mine!" Daemon offered his own present. Berry took it and opened it with the same care he opened Howl's gift with. It was a beginner's cookbook, dozens of fun but simple recipes with pictures and detailed steps for each one. Berry hugged the book close to his chest and reached up to pull Daemon down into a tender kiss.

"I LOVE IT! THANK YOU SO MUCH." Berry's eye lights were even larger glowing hearts. 

"you're welcome. happy valentine's day, honey." He kissed back happily, then pulled back to give them both space.

Berry looked to Howl. "HOWL, IT’s OKAY IF YOU SAY NO, BUT I WANTED TO ASK, MAY I NUZZLE YOUR HAND?”

Howl delicately pulled off a glove and offered it. "YOU MAY."

Berry felt like he could float away with how happy he was at this moment. He took Howl's hand in his warm gloves and brought the delicate bones to his face. Berry purred happily as he nuzzled his datemate’s hand while sitting on Daemon’s lap.

Daemon was purring like a motor, snuggling Berry gently, a faint flush to his cheekbones. Howl watched Berry's movements, keeping himself relaxed. This was okay. This was more than okay, even, it was great. He wasn't really one to push the limits, but... It was Valentine's Day, after all. "BERRY, I HAVE A REQUEST FOR YOU. COULD YOU STAY VERY STILL FOR ME FOR A MOMENT?"

Berry froze his movements. "YES, ANGEL."

He pulled his hand away and leaned in. There was some hesitation in his expression, a hint of nerves, but nonetheless, he went further. His hand landed delicately on Berry's face, his own an inch away. Another moment's hesitation, before he crossed that gap with a gentle kiss, his sockets closing.

Berry kept very still as Howl closed the gap and kissed him. It was more than he dreamed Howl would do. He relaxed into the kiss but still tried not to move.

Howl held it for a long moment before finally pulling away and letting go. Periwinkle blue dusted across his cheeks, making the crack across his mouth even more obvious as it glowed brighter from within. "YOU CAN MOVE AGAIN. THANK YOU."

Berry felt like jello. He was completely and thoroughly swooned, skull bright blue with magic. He leaned against Daemon, happy to let him hold him up. Berry felt so loved, safe and wante. his eye lights flickering between stars and hearts. "THANK YOU, MY ANGEL. MY PUPPY." He lifted his arm up and pulled Daemon down so he could share Howl's precious kiss with him.

"YOU'RE VERY WELCOME."

"mmm." Daemon hummed happily into the kiss, rubbing Berry's back a little. When he pulled back, he gave puppy eyes to Howl.

"YES, YOU TOO. HOLD STILL." Howl leaned in again to kiss his brother with the same delicate care.

Berry was close, with a front and center view, to the two of them as Howl closed the distance again. The smaller monster couldn't help the soft purr as he watched them. They were so beautiful together. A bright blue graced his cheeks. He couldn’t believe that they thought him worthy to share in this moment and be their datemate: Berry felt so happy, wanted, loved. Most of all, he felt safe. Daemon had kept his promise. He wasn't taking more than Berry or Howl was willing to give. The safe feeling drowned out the voice in the back of his mind.

When Howl pulled back, Daemon was blushing and had a dopey grin he hid in Berry's shoulder. 

"i'm so happy..."

"ME TOO." Howl replaced his glove.

Berry stroked Daemon's head lovingly. This much trust was new, scary and hard, but he wanted this so badly. Their love was a healing salve on his wounded soul. It was a peace that Berry was denied for a long time. The purr got stronger. He wanted them and their love like a man wandering in the desert wanted water. "ME THREE. I LOVE YOU BOTH," he told them tenderly.

"WE'RE VERY GLAD TO HEAR IT."

"so glad." Daemon nuzzled him a little more.

Berry caressed the side of Daemon's skull, sighing happily, "DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER PLANS TODAY?" He would be happy just being with them all day.

"OH, YES. ACTUALLY, WE ARE GOING OVER TO YOUR BROTHER'S HOUSE FOR DINNER AND GAME NIGHT."

Confusion fell on Berry. He asked hopefully, "DID THE QUEEN RESCIND HER ORDER?"

"NO, UNFORTUNATELY NOT."

"vex came up with a plan for how you can see your brother." Daemon nuzzled. "you'll see when we get there, just be very careful what you say, okay?"

Berry nodded, still confused, but excited to see Stretch. "ALRIGHT. I CAN’T WAIT.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what do you think Vex's plan is? Any guess what will happen next week? Leave a comment letting use know your speculations and what you thought of this chapter.


	16. I Feel it Deep Within, it's Just Beneath the Skin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which some plates get broken, and everyone cares very much about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!  
> I'm so happy to see you back! I hope you enjoy this week. Why not leave a comment and a kudo to let us know what you liked about it. Also don't forget to subscribe to not only the story but GetMcDunkedOn and myself for updates straight to your email. <3

As the skeletons arrived in pairs to the house, Vex fiddled with the thick scarf wrapped around Stretch's sockets. It was his own, a new one that he admittedly didn't like to use. He childishly clung to the old one, repairing it whenever necessary, since he'd had it since he was just a babybones. But at least this one had some use now. The dark red material didn't seem at all see-through, not even when he'd tested it on himself last night. But just in case, when he pulled back, he held up his open hand.

"ALRIGHT, LOVE, CAN YOU SEE MY FACE? OR CAN YOU TELL ME HOW MANY FINGERS I'M HOLDING UP?"

Stretch focused hard and tilted his head side to side to see if any light leaked through. "Nope." He popped the 'p.' He was excited. their souling dancing around within him, feeding off the energy. It was a dangerous game they were playing, but... by the angel, he missed his brother and his hugs.

"GOOD. NOW REMEMBER, IF YOU HEAR BERRY, HE'S DEFINITELY NOT IN FRONT OF YOU, AND DEFINITELY ONLY ON THE PHONE. THIS IS ME WINKING AT YOU." He didn't actually wink, because why bother, but he hoped Stretch appreciated his attempt at humor. He leaned in and kissed Stretch gently. "I THINK THEY'RE ARRIVING."

"thanks." Stretch kissed him back, his arm sneaking around Vex for a hug. "i love ya and remind me to worship you extra special tonight." He tilted his head. "i'm winking at you," he added as he chuckled.

"OH DON'T WORRY, IT'S VALENTINE'S DAY, I WON'T FORGET." He hugged back gently.

Red whistled as he set his apple rose tart on the kitchen counter. He was sleepy from wearing himself out with Sans and then baking, but he was eager to play some games - and tease his boyfriend with the taste of this dessert.

"i'm going to guess sans or red is here," Stretch said.

Sans walked out of the jacket closet, looking extra tried. He claimed a fluffy chair to cushion his aching bones. He blushed thinking about how it was a good ache, though.

"both. what’s with the scarf?" he asked.

"STRETCH IS NOT ALLOWED TO SEE BERRY."

"HOW TERRIBLE!" Papyrus came out of the kitchen, having hitched a ride with Red. "HELLO, EVERYONE, SO GOOD TO SEE YOU IN PERSON!"

"oh geez. that sucks, stretch." Sans wiggled in the chair, his skull a little blue as Papyrus walked in. "Hey, bro. Welcome to game night."

Stretch gave a wave. "hey, nice to hear from ya paps."

"oof, yeah. don't worry, stretch, we'll forgive you for being kinky just this once," Red teased, coming to snuggle his mate.

"you're just jelly i get to be an exhibitionist tonight," Stretch joked back.

"HELLO, STRETCH! DO NOT BE ALARMED, THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS GOING IN FOR A HUG!"

He held his arms open for Papyrus. "Bring it in Paps." Papyrus hugged the pregnant monster carefully.

Sans hid his skull in Red’s shoulder. Normally, he would be fine with joking, but in front of his baby bro... "so." His voice cracked a bit from the embarrassment. "what's for dinner?" Trying to change the subject.

"shit, you're right, i'm definitely jealous." Red snickered and patted Sans's leg to comfort him.

"DON'T WORRY, CHERRY, I'M SURE YOU CAN CONTAIN YOURSELF UNTIL YOU GET HOME AND CAN SAFELY PRACTICE CONSENSUAL, ENTHUSIASTIC KINKPLAY WITH MY BROTHER WHO THINKS I KNOW NOTHING OF SEX!" Papyrus said brightly.

Red wheezed and started cackling.

"GET IT ALL OUT NOW BEFORE HOWL AND BERRY GET HERE," Vex sighed.

Sans groaned. "ah paps...." His skull was neon blue. "hey look." He pointed out the window. "a distraction." He ported into the kitchen.

Stretch laughed at the familiar pop of someone porting. "oh, red, where’d he go?"

Papyrus let him go, nyeh-heh-hehing softly to himself and pulling away from Stretch to sit down.

"the kitchen," Red said, still sniggering. "don't worry, he'll be back, he just needs to make his face stop being a beacon the aliens can see from space."

Sans splashed some water on his face and tried to calm down. After a few deep calming breaths, he was able to stop glowing and grabbed a drink and headed back to the living room.

Red gently patted Sans's leg again. "you alright?" he asked under his breath. Teasing was all in good fun, but he wanted to make sure Sans wasn't to upset.

Sans pulled his hand down his face, then made sure Papyrus wasn't listening to them and mumbled back, "yah. i just don't want to hear, 'enthusiastic kinkplay"--he shivered--"come out of pap's mouth ever again." He smiled at Red. "maybe you can help me forget the memory and associate the words with you later."

Red still snickered a little. "i think he was making a point. but sure, sweetheart~"

Sans sighed, "i know he was, but he is my baby bro. i'm not ready to face the fact he has grown up. maybe once i have my own child, that might change. then i wont think of him as my babybones no more." he joked.

"sorry, babe, i can't relate. i mean, yeah, i raised vex? but, uh... well. i mean, he showed he was no younger than me pretty clearly, sometimes..." He laughed nervously at the joke. "heh. yeah. a kid. right."

Sans let the subject drop, Red just would not understand, and that was fine. He relaxed, almost laying on top of Red.

Red just snuggled his lover gently. He hoped he could at least offer some physical comfort, even if he didn't know how to reassure Sans with words. He gave soft kisses to Sans's cheekbone.

* * *

There was a crisp knock at the door not long after. Howl was always polite and made sure they landed outside of another person's home, thank you very much.

Stretch perked up when he heard the door. He sat up straighter and almost got up in the thrill of the moment. "vex, love. that should be them."

"AH, YES. I'LL LET THEM IN." He went over to the door and opened it. "GOOD EVENING! I'M GLAD YOU COULD MAKE IT."

"HELLO." Howl led the way inside, holding Daemon's leash. Daemon was holding hands with Berry.

"hiya!"

Berry rocked on his heels in excitement, squeezing Daemon. He looked to his brother-in-law happily. "HELLO VEX." Berry tried to look around the larger skeleton to get a glimpse of his brother, but couldn't see him from this angle.

Stretch asked Paps, "can you see from here? is it them?"

"YES, IT APPEARS TO BE DAEMON AND HOWL," Papyrus assured. "AND SOMEONE WHO IS CERTAINLY NOT BERRY, SO KEEP THE SCARF ON, YES?"

The four monsters came into the living room. "COME IN, YES, SAY HELLO TO EVERYONE. SO NICE TO HEAR BERRY'S VOICE FROM A SCREEN AND DEFINITELY NOT IN PERSON! HOWL, WHY DON'T YOU HUG STRETCH FOR BERRY?" Vex suggested.

Howl unclipped the leash from his brother's neck. "CERTAINLY." He made a shooing motion at Berry to go on and hug his brother.

Berry hurried over to Stretch, catching on to the ploy. He sat next to him and hugged tightly. he couldn't help but sigh into him. Stretch wrapped his arms around not-Berry. That thought had the Judge raising up in him. He squeezed, knowing it was Berry, his brother. Stretch’s fingers tightened their grip as there was a powerful urge to pull off the scarf, to use energy his body was saving for the baby, to instead port them to the Queen's room at the embassy. 'it's howl... i'm hugging howl,' he told himself. 'howl, not berry.' The more he told himself, that the more the impulse was curbed. It was still there, like an annoying fly buzzing around his skull, but he could ignore it.

Howl came over to sit nearby, as did Daemon. "I HAVE BERRY ON MY PHONE, SO YOU CAN SPEAK TO HIM IF YOU'D LIKE," he said, making it obvious they could talk. Daemon ached to go over and hug them both too. It had to be so difficult, dancing around it all so painstakingly.

"HEY LITTLE BROTHER." Blue gave a squeeze subconsciously. "HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY. YOU'RE LOOKING GOOD. HOW ARE YOU AND THE BABY DOING?"

Stretch took a deep breath, the squeeze making it harder to believe the lie he was trying to sell. He gave a little squeeze back before praying his fingers off. "we’re doing great, now that you're here. i love it when you call me, bro."

Vex watched his lover and Berry for a moment, unable to push aside the last vestiges of nervousness. He was brilliant, of course, and it was a good plan. But he had still been frightened that his skirting the rules would get them both hurt if Stretch couldn't resist the Judge's particularities. Everything seemed fine... He tore himself away to go get dinner from the kitchen. "I MADE PIGS IN BLANKETS AND FRIED RAVIOLIS. FINGER FOOD. WHAT GAME WERE WE GOING TO PLAY TODAY?"

Berry pull away from the embrace. "OH ALL THE FOODS SOUND GREAT." He thought about games. "MAYBE TASTE TEST, BLIND FOLD DRAWING OR PIN THE TAIL ON THE DONKEY?" he offered.

"i'm always up for food,” Stretch said. "if we do drawings, put everyone's names on them and the answer so i can look at them later and know who did what."

Sans snuggled into Red. "i'm up for any of the games."

"what's blindfold drawing?" Red asked, rubbing Sans's side.

"I BELIEVE IT IS WHEN WE ALL DRAW WITHOUT LOOKING AND TRY TO GUESS WHAT EACH OTHER MADE?" Papyrus suggested.

"that sounds hilarious, i'm in."

Berry nodded excitedly. "PAPS IS RIGHT. IT'S A LOT OF FUN."

"DRAWING WITHOUT LOOKING," Howl mused. "A DIFFICULT CHALLENGE, BUT I WILL DEFINITELY SUCCEED."

"you'll do great, master!" Daemon assured.

Stretch nodded, "alright, let’s play that. after we eat."

"sounds like a plan," Sans commented.

"yeah, sure, works for me,” Red agreed.

Sans made a plate hanging it to Red. "looks great, vex."

"thanks, babe." Red started to nom.

"LET ME FEED YOU, LOVE." Vex sat down beside Stretch to help him eat.

Stretch blushed, "thanks, love. you're the best." He wanted to make a joke about Vex stuffing him, but held it back and opened his mouth.

"IT'S A LOT OF FUN. YOU PULL OUT A PAPER WITH A WORD ON IT THEN YOU HAVE TO DRAW IT." Berry got up. "I THINK THERE ARE SOME LEFT FROM THE LAST TIME WE PLAYED. I HAD A LOT OF THEM. I'LL GO FIND THEM." He went off to his room.

"WAIT A MOMENT, BERRY," Howl said, holding up a hand. Daemon darted after him to gently take his hand.

"come eat first," he requested gently. "there's enough for everyone, that includes you."

Vex preened as he gently fed Stretch a fried ravioli. "NATURALLY, BUT I APPRECIATE THE COMPLIMENT."

Berry looked down. They needed to eat first. They were more important, but Howl and Daemon had both requested… "OKAY..." He allowed Daemon to walk him to the food and made a small plate for himself.

"thank you." He nuzzled Berry gently. "also, don't forget, we're pretending you're on the phone, yeah? to make it easier for stretch to not, um, do the judge-y thing. you're doing great, just keep that in mind." He sat back down with his own plate.

"HOW DOES IT TASTE, LOVE?" Vex asked his mate.

"delicious, love." He couldn't help a small smile. He licked Vex’s fingers when he was fed the next piece.

Berry held his plate and watched the others eat. He nibbled a little to keep the others happy.

Sans got up. "Anyone want a drink?"

"I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT." He blushed a little when Stretch licked his fingers, but tried to hide it. Luckily, Howl was focused on trying to gently encourage Berry to eat more than little nibbles.

Berry gave in and accepted Howl's encouragement, as people looked like they had their fill. He started to eat normal size bits. He told Sans, "I'LL TAKE SOME MILK, PLEASE."

It would take time to get Berry to eat well... For now, Howl was just happy Berry was trying. "IS THERE WINE?"

"NO, BUT THERE'S COFFEE."

"...ACCEPTABLE."

"bleh," Red said. "just get me the mustard, babe."

"I WOULD LIKE WATER, LIKE A NORMAL PERSON," Papyrus said cheerily.

"grab me a bottle of honey." Stretch said.

Sans ported off to the kitchen. While he was gone, Red stole a piece of Sans's food just to be a little shit.

Sans used his powers to float the dinks to everyone. He tossed a mustard bottle to Red. Seeing his plate missing food, he said nothing, just smirked.

Berry took his drink from the air. "THANK YOU, SANS."

"THANK YOU, BROTHER." Papyrus took his drink as well, and Howl sipped his coffee thoughtfully.

"IT TASTES PRETTY GOOD," he admitted.

"I ONLY GET, AS THEY CALL IT, THE GOOD STUFF," Vex said self-importantly.

"thanks, sansy, you're a peach." Red took his mustard and gulped down about half of it in one go. He expected the sour, tangy flavor of his favorite condiment, but the sweet tanginess of ketchup filled his mouth instead. He stopped and spat out some of it in shock, leaving a small mess on the table.

"RED!" Vex scolded.

Sans doubled over with laughter.

"i've been betrayed. i love and care for you and you feed me ketchup?" He gave Sans puppy eyes.

Daemon snorted and started giggling quietly.

Berry giggled quietly too; it had been a good few weeks since he saw them pull a prank on each other. The short skeleton missed Red and Sans’ antics. He was having a great time and took a drink of the milk.

Stretch was dying in laughter, trying to imagine Red's face.

Sans sat next to his datemate and pulled him in for a hug and whispered in Red's ear, "makes ya tastier." He pulled out a napkin he brought with him and wiped Red's face lovingly.

"HOOLIGANS." Howl said it in a manner that was supposed to be scolding, but it was offset by Berry's giggles. It was so good to see Berry happy and laughing.

Red's face turned his namesake as Sans whispered that to him, and he grinned a little to kiss him with the sweet taste still on his tongue.

Sans kissed Red back. The delicious flavor of ketchup on Red's tongue was intoxicating. He was flushed blue as he pulled back.

"mmm..." Red gave Sans one last lick as he pulled back, smirking. "doesn't taste so bad mixed with vanilla," he whispered back.

Sans blushed and relaxed into Red.

Berry leaned into Daemon, smiling at his datemates. He had just taken the last bit of food and held up his empty plate, showing that he ate all he had on his plate.

Howl focused on his datemates as those two disgustingly made out on the couch, ignoring how it made his bones crawl. "GOOD JOB, BERRY," he praised. "I'M VERY GLAD YOU CLEANED YOUR PLATE."

"you did such a good job." Daemon snuggled him more.

"ARE WE GOING TO HAVE A THEME FOR THIS DRAWING GAME? LIKE, ANIMALS? OR BOOKS? OR PLACES?" Papyrus had finished his food and was eager to get started.

"let's do rounds with different themes. keep it interesting,” Sans said.

"sounds good to me!" Daemon said warmly

Berry smiled, "thanks." He reached for their plate. He went over and got his family's plates too. "WELL, THE TICKETS I HAVE ARE ALL MIXED UP. IF WE DO THE THEMES, WE CAN JUST THINK UP OUR OWN WHEN IT'S OUR TURN. IF THAT'S ALRIGHT." He didn't notice that a piece of the scarf stuck between the two plates as he stacked them. He held the plates tightly, not wanting to drop them, and turned away, causing the whole scarf to shift..

Light flooded into Stretch’s vision. making him blink a few times. It wasn't until he saw a glimpse of Berry that it fully registered what happened. By then, it was too late.

“NO! STRETCH!" Vex lunged at both of them to clap a hand over Stretch’s sockets, but he was a second too late.

Gold filled Stretch’s vision as the justice based magic of the Judge filled him and his arms reached out, grabbing his brother, pulling him close. The flood of gold blinded Vex momentarily, and he was knocked back by the force of the Judge. The plates clattered on the floor loudly as Berry was pulled over. Almost in the same soul beat, Stretch felt his magic burn as the command forced him to use his own magic reserves, magic the Judge did not have: teleportation. It drained his magic, the energy his body stored for their child to make a body. Stretch couldn't stop as he ripped a hole in space. In the time that it took the noise from the dishes to settle, Berry and Stretch were gone.

Red tore away from Sans and off the couch, also reaching out. His hand grabbed around the air where Berry's arm was a fraction of a second too late, and he swore violently.

Howl and Daemon were on their feet instantly, Howl grabbing Daemon's arm instead of bothering with the leash.

"THE EMBASSY, NOW!" he shouted, and Daemon obeyed without speaking, green smoke wafting from black eyelights.

"OH NO. OH NO, STAY CALM. EVERYONE STAY CALM." Papyrus went to help up Vex. "WE SHOULD ALSO GO."

It took Sans a moment to recover from Red shoving him off, and he realized what was happening. With a soft emotion filled, "shit," he ported to the embassy as well.

"yeah, let's go, come on." Red grabbed a hold of Papyrus and Vex, who was swearing and pounding a fist to the carpet, dragging them both through a shortcut.

* * *

Stretch landed in the Swap Queen’s office and curled around Berry, exhausted. The scarf fell down to his neck. He clung tightly to his sibling. He couldn't feel his monarch in the room.

"STRETCH?" Berry mumbled, holding his trembling baby brother, "IT'S OKAY."

The magic compulsion to find her outweighed the common sense to stop using his magic. He needed to find her and complete the command. The Judge made his magic drain again, and he ported to a conference room where she usually held business.

* * *

Howl and Daemon landed in the same room, and Daemon lunged at Berry and Stretch desperately. But again, they were gone a second too soon. He collapsed to the floor and snarled; the smoke billowing from his sockets. His claws were elongating, feet stretching, and bulges formed under the back of his jacket. Howl cursed not having the leash.

"DAEMON, HEEL! CONTROL YOURSELF!"

There was only a wordless snarl in response, deeper, feral.

"MUTT, DON'T YOU DARE-"

 **"BE SILENT, LESSER MORTAL!"** Daemon's voice echoed double, a rumbling, powerful timbre as wings ripped through the jacket, shining green.

Red, Sans, Papyrus and Vex landed in the room and Red immediately skittered back. "oh, holy fuck!"

"GET BACK!" Howl demanded, throwing out a hand. "DAEMON, LISTEN TO ME!"

"ohhhnonono, nope, nope--" Red ported his two passengers into a heap outside. Vex looked dazed, but he ripped away to run back inside.

"STRETCH!"

Red sank to the sidewalk outside, clutching his chest. Papyrus had been about to follow Vex inside when he glanced back, then knelt down beside him.

"CHERRY? ARE YOU ALRIGHT? DID YOU USE TOO MUCH MAGIC?"

Red could only shake his head, wheezing quietly.

"ARE YOU HAVING A PANIC ATTACK?"

He nodded, gripping one of Papyrus's hands.

"IT'S ALRIGHT, CHERRY, I WILL HELP YOU. DEEP BREATHS. LET'S COUNT TOGETHER."

* * *

The room that Stretch and Berry landed in was not empty. There was a startled yell as Gore dropped his blunt. The Fellswap King's eyes were bloodshot, smoke billowing; he was clearly very high. Nonetheless, as Stretch slumped after using too much magic, Gore's gaze darted between them, and then his trident appeared, knocking into Stretch's skull with zero intent but a loud clanging sound.

Berry held on to Stretch as he slid down onto the floor. "BROTHER!" He could see Stretch's magic was noticeably lighter through the shirt. He pulled up Stretch's shirt to look at the dimming flesh. "NO, NO, NO." He looked up at the unknown monster. "PLEASE HE NEEDS HELP! THE BABY!" Berry tried to get his green magic to ignite. It had been so long since he’d last used it. After the Sanitarium, it had never wanted to come to him anymore. "PLEASE. PLEASE. PLEASE!"

The golden glow that Berry hated lit his brother's middle just then. It kept a steady glow as his labor started.

Gore stared dumbly as Berry begged, the trident dissolving. Before he could get up, Vex burst into the room. He fell more than knelt, his hands landing quickly on Stretch's forehead and belly. His soul stuttered.

"OH, FUCK, HE'S GOING INTO LABOR. HE DOESN'T HAVE ENOUGH MAGIC, THE BABY...!"

Gore got up and opened the door, pulling out his phone to call someone. "Drills, I need you to come to the embassy and help deliver a baby for-" he started, only to jump back as the door to the Swap Queen's office crashed open. Daemon roared, expression twisted into fury, and Gore dropped the phone to summon his trident again.

"I'm not high enough for this..."

* * *

Sans landed his King's office from the Queen’s and saw that both Asgore and Swap Queen Toriel were there. He gave her a seething look. Not seeing Berry around, he ported into the main area just in time to see a dragon with dark green wings claw down Gore’s armor. The goat threw him off and thrust his trident, stabbing into one draconic leg. The beast snarled as his tail whipped around to slash at Gore’s arm holding the weapon. The employees and visitors to the embassy were in a panic, throwing themselves away from the fight.

Shocked, Sans took a step back. He could help but to run a check.

>   
>  ~~Daemon~~ **SERPENS**
> 
> 135 ATK 175 DEF
> 
> 2600 HP 14 LV
> 
> *** GET AWAY**.

Asgore came out into the main area, the Underswap Queen just behind him. She gasped while completing her own check as well and slipped back into the office out of sight. She grabbed her phone and called the head of her guard.

Sans cursed. His next step back made him bump against the King. "back up, asgore. very slowly." He looked to the workers and visited the embassy that filled the room. "everyone come to me and hold on," he said calmly.

The King backed up, but didn't head to Sans unlike the workers and visitors, who all scrambled to obey.

Daemon roared again at Gore, just as Howl came running out with his claws out, a fresh wound dripping at one arm.

"STOP LISTENING TO THAT BASTARD, DAEMON, YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!"

The skeletal drake's tail lashed, smoke pouring from his mouth. He crouched low, hackles lowing. He pawed at his own face, sockets squeezing shut.

* * *

Berry scooted over so Vex would have more room. Tears flowed down his face as he begged Vex, "PLEASE DO SOMETHING." The yellow glow gently wrapped itself around Stretch's whole middle, encircling the souling.

"I'M TRYING, BERRY. BACK AWAY IN CASE HE WAKES UP. PLEASE." The strong Fell monster had teared up as he poured vivid orange magic into Stretch, trying desperately to make up for the deficit. "STRETCH, LOVE, I'M HERE. STAY WITH ME."

Berry backed away. There was nothing he could do, and the command had not been completed. He went back toward the door, feeling useless and horrible. He couldn't heal his family, and if Stretch saw him again, it would hurt him and the baby more. As he got closer towards the door, the yelling in the other room reached his upset mind. Berry went to the door and looked past the old goat monster King of Fellswap, who had his trident jammed in the mouth of a large, enraged dragon. He froze in fear at seeing it. Howl was hurt, yelling at it not to listen. The smell of smoke that had a tint of his alpha's scent to it flooded the room. In that moment, Berry knew that was his Daemon. He was hurting. Berry told himself as he ran out, 'IF I CAN'T HELP MY BROTHER OR THE BABY...' He gripped his fist tightly. 'OR MY DATEMATES, I DON’T DESERVE TO BE SAVED.'

He called out as he approached, “PUPPY!”

Vex kept desperately pouring his magic into his lover, watching the orange of Stretch's magic deplete and the yellow build. His own orange mixed with it, and he hoped with all his soul that it would be enough. "ANGEL, PLEASE, OUR CHILD SHOULDN'T BE PUNISHED FOR MY MISTAKES. I'M SORRY." He didn't pull his hands away to wipe the tears streaking down his face. "THIS IS MY FAULT, PUNISH ME INSTEAD OF THEM. I WAS ARROGANT. PLEASE..."

* * *

Outside, Red was getting ahold of himself. He was in his boyfriend's brother's lap, the bigger skeleton stroking his back.

"VERY GOOD BREATHING, CHERRY, I'M SO PROUD. EXCELLENT."

Red nodded without speaking and breathed in again.

"Hey, scuze me!" They both glanced up to see a fish woman with yellow spiral glasses and a large bag of medical supplies.

"Kingy said there was a baby needing delivered in there, move yer butts!"

"stretch??" Red tried to scramble to his feet, but Papyrus held firm.

"NO NO, WE STAY OUT HERE. YOU KEEP BREATHING. SORRY, MISS, RIGHT AWAY." He pitched Red up and moved out of the way of the doors.

* * *

As Drills inched inside, the dragon whipped his head to the side at Berry's call, knocking Gore back to stumble into the wall. Howl cursed.

"NO, BERRY, STAY BACK, HE CAN HURT YOU!"

"Ooohuhuhuhuhu!" Drills stifled her excited giggles as she snapped a picture, then scurried behind Daemon's view to get to the open door where she could see a skeleton on the ground in a different room. She had to dodge the tail as it lashed, barely avoiding being knocked to the ground. But she didn’t seem to mind.

Not-Daemon snarled, then whimpered. The flared wings lowered, and he pounced right at Berry.

Berry stood his ground. It didn't matter if he was hurt. He looked at Howl, hurt and bleeding, weapons at the ready to use on his puppy. Berry felt like this, too, was his fault. He was the reason his Howl, his brother and the baby were hurt. He looked at his alpha with tears in his eyes and presented his neck. Daemon was hurting. He needed to submit to his alpha and try to help his datemate. The smell of blueberries filled the air. 'IF HE PUNISHES ME, IT'S WHAT I DESERVE,' he thought. He held his arms out in an invitation of a hug, "PLEASE. DAEMON. MAY I HUG YOU?"

* * *

In the new commotion, Sans ported the embassy workers out to the front of the building, landing not too far from Paps and Red. Seeing Red, he rushed forward.

"what happened?" He grabbed up Red as he performed a check, which came up normal.

Red whimpered softly, clutching to his datemate. "i'm f- i'm fine- i'm-" Breaths, more breaths.

"HE IS COMING DOWN FROM A PANIC ATTACK, BUT HE IS PHYSICALLY UNINJURED, BROTHER, SO DO NOT WORRY! I HELPED HIM COUNT LIKE THE AMAZING FRIEND I AM."

Sans cradled Red, rocking him. "it's okay, redy. just breathe for me." He kissed him softly and projected love and calmness. He looked to the building. That no one was screaming, and no smoke was coming out of the building was a good sign. He had to believe in them. He looked to Papyrus. "paps, hang back from the door, but can you see if they're okay in there?"

Red nodded again, holding on tight. The projections had him calm more. "i'm ok... hhh..." He pressed his face into Sans's shoulder, breathing in his sweet vanilla and ketchup scent.

Papyrus nodded and peeked into the building as best he could.

* * *

Daemon landed on Berry, knocking him down, teeth bared, but there were tears in his sockets. The smoke was thinning. His claws retracted and the wings dimmed as he clutched Berry tight.  
"HELp me... help..." His voice lost the double timbre as he sobbed.

Berry fell with a bump and and a wheeze as air rushed out of him. As Daemon transformed, he wrapped his arm around him. 'AT LEAST I CAN HELP YOU,' Berry thought. "THERE, THERE. WE GOT YOU. YOU’RE A GOOD PUPPY." He kissed the distraught monster's head. He let love, warmth and caring intent flow to Daemon. "WE LOVE YOU, PUPPY."

Howl let out his breath all at once, letting the claws go. His own voice dropped low, deep, more like the lowercase he always hid with power.

"you're alright, my good puppy, everything is alright."

He came over and knelt beside them as Daemon cried into Berry’s shoulder. The wings melted away, leaving ugly tears in the back of his jacket, and the last of the beastly features faded.

"i'm so sorry... i'm a good boy, i'm sorry... i didn't mean it..."

"we know. it’s alright.”

* * *

"PLEASE, PLEASE--"

"Scoot, doctor's here!" Drills announced, and Vex stopped his pleas to the Angel. He looked up, then forced himself to move more to Stretch's upper half. He didn't pull his hand from Stretch's belly, though. Drills pulled on gloves with a snap and summoned Stretch's soul, making Vex stiffen.

"BE CARE-"

"Oooh, buddyboy, don't get in my way, I'm gonna save a baby here like a real hero, got it?"

He watched distrustfully as she pulled out a glowing green bag and an I/V.

"WHAT'S THAT?"

"Green magic, so save yours." She inserted the IV into Stretch's soul and rolled the flow control to start the drip, hanging the bag on a small, extendable stand. Then she put the soul back from under the ribs and smacked Vex’s hands from the belly and pressed.

"The body is forming quicker than usual, but it still might take almost an hour, I think. I see the torso. What's the yellow?"

"THE JUDGE."

She lifted her free hand to her glasses to lift them and made her deadpan obvious. He petted Stretch's skull.

"A FOREIGN MAGIC BEING THAT IS, SHALL WE SAY, ABLE TO POSSESS HIM LIKE A GHOST CAN POSSESS ANY OBJECT. IT HAS IMMENSE POWER AND IS OATHBOUND TO THE SWAP QUEEN."

She cackled, dropping the glasses again.

"Badass! The baby is definitely getting its influence. I can't stop it."

He felt sick.

* * *

Asgore knelt next to Howl. "may i?" He gestured at the skeleton's injuries.

Just then Undyne and Al came running in. "Where's the threat?!" Al had her axes at the ready.

"What happened?!” Undyne yelled at the same time, her own weapons drawn.

Howl glanced up at Asgore. "REFRAIN FROM TOUCHING ME, BUT YES." He held out his arm, only to bristle at Undyne and Al. "THE THREAT IS GONE, PUT YOUR WEAPONS AWAY BEFORE YOU SCARE EVERYONE."

Asgore hovered just above the injury and let his magic overflow and cascade on to the injury. "We’re fine now, captains."

Howl's arm stopped dripping marrow with the healing, and the cut sealed to a small fresh scar. "I APPRECIATE THE ASSISTANCE, YOUR MAJESTY."

Gore had let his trident disappear and now slunk back into the room with Stretch, Drills and Vex to find his dropped blunt.

Berry held Daemon tight, petting his skull and peppering kisses on him. "YOU’RE A GOOD BOY PUPPY. THANK YOU FOR COMING FOR ME."

* * *

“IT LOOKS LIKE… DAEMON AND BERRY ARE HUGGING. THINGS LOOK OKAY NOW.”

Sans relaxed more at that. "thanks paps." He nuzzled Red and kept up the intent, "i got you, babe. you're safe."

Red managed to fully relax, letting out a low breath. He was exhausted from the panic attack, but this wasn't over yet. "i'm alright, put me down, sweetheart. vex needs me."

"ARE YOU SURE, CHERRY?"

"yeah. it's ok. thanks for all the help, paps."

"YOU'RE VERY WELCOME!" Papyrus beamed.

"thank you too, sweetheart." He squeezed Sans's hand, then headed inside cautiously.

* * *

Stretch moaned as he came to. "berry?" he called out.

Vex kept petting Stretch. "I SENT HIM AWAY, STRETCH. THE JUDGE TOOK OVER. I'M SO SORRY, I JUST WANTED YOU TO GET TO SPEND TIME WITH HIM.”

"Don't try to get up," Drills said, still prodding at his belly experimentally. Her other hand pulled out a syringe. "Do you need painkillers?"

Stretch whined, nodded, and gripped his mate’s hand hard. If Vex sent him away, then he had to be fine. "The baby?" he asked.

"THE BABY IS COMING, LOVE." Vex squeezed Stretch's hand. "IT'S COMING NOW, YOU'RE IN LABOR."

"But it seems okay, it's coming along nicely. Do you need this painkiller or not, dude?"

Stretch moaned through a contraction, squeezing painfully. "angel, please." It hurt so bad. "yes. give me some," he breathed.

Drills injected the painkiller into Stretch's arm, numbing his body without affecting the magic flow.

"There you go, that should help." She went back to feeling at the belly, watching the body continue to develop. "No deformities, no missing limbs so far. They're developing fine. Hey, hey, are skeletons born with tails?"

"SOMETIMES," Vex said curtly, squeezing Stretch's hand back. "BREATHE, LOVE, BREATHE DEEP."

Stretch relaxed the pain dulled quickly. "thanks, babe." He squeezed Vex's hand. “can i use your lap as a pillow?" he sighed.

"OF COURSE YOU CAN, LOVE." Vex eased Stretch so his head was on Vex's legs. He filled them out with some ecto to make them softer and more comfortable as a pillow. He kept petting Stretch's skull gently, watching the belly. "YOU'RE DOING SO WELL. I'M SO GLAD WE DECIDED ON A NAME, AREN'T YOU?

"Hey, spill the beans!" Drills said with a smirk. "Don't just allude to it!"

Vex ignored her antics.

* * *

Undyne and Al dropped their weapons, and they turned into spent magic. Al looked around for the Queen, then down to Berry. She squeezed her hands. "Berry, you should leave before the Queen comes out here."

Howl glanced up at the two of them. "RIGHT, YES. BUT WE HAVE TO BE NEAR STRETCH BECAUSE OF THE BABY. NOTHING SHOULD TEAR BERRY AWAY FROM HIS BROTHER GIVING BIRTH, FOR STARS' SAKE."

"but if the queen... master, please..." Daemon buried his face into Berry's shoulder again. "i don't wanna do it again, please..."

"ALRIGHT. ALRIGHT, PUPPY, IT'LL BE ALRIGHT. WE'LL LEAVE. IS THAT ALRIGHT, BERRY?"

"No, he shouldn't have to leave." King Asgore stood. "I'll make sure nothing happens if you want to stay, Berry."

Berry looked at Daemon and gently pet his skull, trying to soothe him, "I DON'T WANT TO HURT DAEMON, AND I'LL HURT STRETCH AND THE BABY IF I STAY."

 ~~Everyone is better off with you out of the way.~~ The voice was getting louder in his head.

He hugged Daemon tight. "I WANT TO GO HOME WITH YOU AND DAEMON, PLEASE," he pleaded sadly.

Howl shook his head. "WE APPRECIATE IT, YOUR MAJESTY, BUT STRETCH IS COMPELLED. IF HE SEES BERRY, HE IS TO BRING HIM IMMEDIATELY TO THE QUEEN. THAT'S HOW WE WOUND UP HERE, AND THE BABY... STRETCH WASN'T SUPPOSED TO GO INTO LABOR FOR ANOTHER TWO WEEKS. WE WILL GO." He set his arm on Daemon as the taller brother stood up and held Berry in his arms.

"it'll be okay, berry," he murmured. "we'll keep tabs."

He ported them all home, to the living room.

* * *

Red watched all of this, then quietly pulled out his phone to text Howl and say he'd send updates. He headed towards the other room, around Gore, who was slinking back out with drugs in tow, pretending he wasn’t bleeding from his scrap with the dragon.

Sans squeezed Red's hand as he read the text over his shoulder. Some of the office workers and visitors flowed back in behind them. The Queen peeked her head out of the office, seeing all was well now. She came out.

"Captain, report."

"The situation was taken care of by the time we arrived, my Queen."

Asgore looked at her. "We owe our lives to the omega you have been hurting, and now his brother is giving birth in the other room. Their child is in danger and a family has been torn apart because of your laws," he said sternly.

The Queen stepped back. "I would never hurt a child. I..." She looked confused. She looked to the room.

"if you're talking about daemon turning into a dragon," Red said, before he could lose his bravery, "then yeah, he freaked out because we were all having a real fucking pleasant valentine's day, minding our own business, and stretch caught a glimpse of his own brother and was forced to drag him here and use up all his magic. daemon freaked out because that's his fucking datemate. only berry calming him down stopped him. so fuck you, lady, people here, a baby, almost died 'cause of you!"

"CHERRY, THAT'S ENOUGH." Papyrus put a hand on Red's shoulder. "HOSTILITY WILL NOT MAKE THIS SITUATION BETTER."

Red muttered something distasteful under his breath and texted Howl again. "you stay the fuck away from my brother and his baby!" he called after the Queen.

Sans squeezed Red's hand and added, "hasn't your justice hurt enough innocent people?"

The Queen grimaced, balling her fists. She went to the room, Asgore just behind her. She stopped short at the door, seeing Stretch on the floor in labor, her hand raising to her mouth. "I didn't think… this would happen," she said softly.

"Show a parent and child mercy. Lift the command, Toriel."

Stretch grimaced as he saw the Queen. He turned his head, trying to hide in Vex lap.

Vex couldn't help his entire being going rigid as the Queen's voice sounded, grating on his ability to keep his cool. It had been some time now since he'd last lashed out at anyone out of sheer anger and not necessity, but even so, the urge swelled as quickly and unstoppably as it always had, from the very first time in the snow, Red's hesitant grin, the blaster fading away, the dust of their attackers fading. The feeling of bone past gloves as he wrapped his fingers around something that he wanted to hurt, to make understand his own pain and misery and grief, and that time, his own love for the object of his ire had opposed the feeling enough to keep him (just barely) reasonable. A day of his nightmares, a day he still sought repentance for every minute of his life, over a decade later. There was no such buffer here. His alpha aura permeated the entire room heavily, strong and angry and aggressive. The usually semi-sweet pineapple was almost sour, the raw tension palpable. He was sending out enough warning pheromones to make a pack of wolves turn.

"IF YOU STEP THROUGH THAT DOORWAY, MY SWORD WILL GO THROUGH YOUR THROAT," he said, his voice even out of necessity, with humongous effort. "DO NOT TRY ME TONIGHT. MY RESTRAINT ONLY GOES SO FAR."

Drills looked between them, a grin wide on her face, one hand reaching for her phone like she thought there might be a fight she had to get pictures of.

Queen Toriel stood in the doorway. The pure malice dripping from Vex's words had her frozen, seeing the pure pain in what should have been one of the most blissful moments in a monster's life, the birth of their child. Now it was overshadowed by a possible miscarriage. Her hand glowed the same golden color as Stretch’s ecto.

Stretch let out a small whimper and his body spasmed as the magic was forced through his soul by the Queen.

"I rescind the order of judgment."

The magic washed over Stretch's soul, removing the brand of command.

When Stretch whimpered and spasmed like that, Vex's eyelights flared vicious orange, and he was already halfway to springing to his feet when the Queen's words hit him. The magic forming in his hand sparked out, his sword never fully materializing, as he realized with a tremble in his soul that his lover was free of that horrible command. With a deep breath, he lowered himself back down, resettling Stretch's head on his lap.

"HOW DO YOU FEEL, LOVE?" The deadly edge to his voice dropped away, what precious little softness he still held in his LV-crusted soul blossoming again. "HAS IT EASED NOW?"

Stretch felt his soul lighten and the magic wash away the horrible command. "yes," he breathed out.

Drills looked disappointed, lowering her phone again. The Swap Queen turned around and left the building. Al fell into step behind her.

Undyne grabbed a broom and put it behind her neck with her arms hanging over it. "Did she let Berry go?"

"No," Asgore said, "but she showed mercy, so there's hope."

Red watched the queen go darkly, then gave Howl another update before stepping into the room. He knelt by his brother, putting a hand on his shoulder. Vex glanced over, gratitude showing in his expression as Red gave the same kind of hesitant smile he did that day so long ago.

Stretch took Vex's hand again. "don't you leave me, but someone get berry back here."

Sans lovingly squeezed Red's shoulder, seeing he had started the text already. "we’ll text them it's safe to come back, don’t worry. he’ll be back soon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my, so many things happened! What did you think of all this? let us know. We love to talk with you! What did you think of SERPENS? Also what do you think will happen to the baby?


	17. Give Me a Forever that We Both Can Share

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which you finally get the baby's name, you're welcome.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Wow what a ride we had last week. Lets keep it going. Be sure to leave a comment to let us know what you thought of the baby's name. <3
> 
> Chapter tags: brief mention of violence, drinking, baby birth, smoking, mild PTST/OCD
> 
> Detailed summary and picture in the bottom notes!

Berry held onto Daemon tight. He felt like this just verified all the hurtful things the voice had said to him over the years. Shame and guilt filled his soul. He had hurt his brother, their baby, and his datemates. "I'M SORRY I SCARED YOU. I CAUSED YOU TO BE HURT, HOWL." He sobbed, " I'M SORRY." He nuzzled into his tall datemate and tears fell down his face

~~Horrible sully. Corrupting others with your filith.~~

He felt he really did deserve to be locked away in a room, if it would keep them safe, 'I WAS GREEDY. IT GOT THEM ALL HURT,' he thought.

Daemon kept tight hold of Berry himself, nuzzling gently.That hated voice from his soul was pushed away easily enough on good days, and on bad days, Howl was always there. His commanding presence and unending love was usually just enough to quiet the rage of the inner dragon, who's best argument was in the inherent weakness in every person he set eyes on.

Serpens’ living will inside of him was almost similar to a Judge, he thought grimly, except this one judged everyone guilty of complete inferiority, and the consequences for their guilt came in a haze of reddish-green vision, claws tearing through flesh, and the smell of charred bodies. He sometimes wondered if he was bad just for liking best, the kind of meat that was cooked as thoroughly with fire as he had cooked sentient beings.

This was by no means the first time he had injured Howl, either, and compared to what could have been, the claw gashes across one arm were not terrible. They healed alright, even if Howl bore a new scar that would never go away completely. Gore had not been gravely hurt either, despite facing him down head-on and staring fireballs in the face, and the assorted workers of the embassy had all gotten out without harm. Truly, things had worked out as best they could given the circumstances. But he still felt ashamed, throat burning under the collar. And the fear hadn't totally gone away from seeing Berry like that, throat exposed, arms out ready and waiting for Daemon to tear him apart. Just thinking about that expression made him press his face needily into Berry's shoulder to inhale that scent and assure himself his sweet, innocent lover was still safe. He could've killed one of the two things that made him happiest in the world.

He again pushed away the voice of Serpens's directive to gain as much power as he could through LV and endless training and think nothing of paltry emotional bonds, and kissed Berry's cheek softly.

"this wasn't your fault, honey."

"DAEMON IS RIGHT." Howl let go immediately upon their arrival, pulling away to go to the kitchen. He poured himself a generous amount of wine, knowing it wasn't the best choice for comfort, knowing it would help immediately anyway. "THIS WAS AN UNFORTUNATE ACCIDENT. AND THE ROOT OF IT IS YOUR QUEEN'S RIDICULOUS LAW." He returned with the glass, unwilling to stray from his upset lovers for long. "YOU DO NOT NEED TO APOLOGIZE TO ME, BERRY, I AM NOT ANGRY."

Berry held onto Daemon. Howl and him were a beautiful light dancing in the darkness that was trying to consume his mind. He held on to their warmth. "BUT IF I WASN'T A BAD OMEGA, NO ONE WOULD HAVE BEEN PUT IN THIS SITUATION." He nuzzled Daemon. He slipped into lowercase, his voice a soft whisper as he admitted, "maybe... dr. gaster is right. i'm only good for two things..." He shivered. "i need to stop being greedy." His hand tightened on Daemon. He didn't want to leave either of his datemates. "i should be locked away, so i don't hurt my loved ones... maybe staying locked in the house would be best for everyone..."

"YOU ARE NOT A BAD OMEGA," Howl chided gently. His phone blipped, but he ignored it for a moment. "YOU ARE A VERY GOOD OMEGA, AND BAD THINGS HAVE HAPPENED TO YOU THROUGH NO FAULT OF YOUR OWN."

"berry, don't listen to anything that bad man says," Daemon pleaded. "don't listen. i can't listen, and you can't either. they're bad. you make all of us so happy. we love being around you. you care so much, and your smile lights up the room."

Berry buried his head into Demon's shirt. He couldn't stop the tears. Small hiccups shook his body as he cried. His soul ached at what happened to his brother and their baby and how Howl had gotten hurt by his own brother. They all should have been giving him to the Sanatorium, but they wanted to keep him, despite everything. They were so wonderful. Berry started to calm down, his hands unclenching in Daemon’s shirt. Now that he was calming down, he realized, 'THEY CAME FOR ME WHEN I WAS TAKEN.’ They wouldn't let him be taken away again. He started to cry again.

"I LOVE YOU BOTH," he managed between hiccupping sobs. He held out a hand, hoping Howl would hold him too.

Howl would really rather keep his hands to himself, his mind still struggling to calm from the panic. But Berry needed comfort, and stars damn it, the least he could do was hold hands. But he kept the glove on this time as he took Berry's hand.

"WE LOVE YOU TOO."

"we love you so much," Daemon agreed. "it's okay. you can cry on me as much as you want."  
Howl's phone pinged again. He again ignored it.

Berry cried for a good while. When he stopped, he was a tired mess laying on Daemon. Once he calmed down he looked to Howl. "THANK YOU, ANGEL." He gave a squeeze before letting go. He leaned up and gave Daemon a kiss. "THANK YOU PUPPY. THANK YOU BOTH FOR COMING FOR ME."

By that time, Howl had gotten three more texts and was done with the wine glass full enough to really count as three glasses. There was a faint flush to his cheekbones as he set the glass down. "ALWAYS."

"we would never just let you be taken," Daemon said, kissing back gently. "are you feeling better?"

Howl finally checked his phone, brow rising.

Berry nodded his face was a mess with the now drying tears. He rubbed at them. "I NEED TO STOP GETTING YOU DIRTY."

"i don't mind it. i'm already a bit of a mess anyway. i need to change..."

"DO SO QUICKLY. WE HAVE TO GO." Howl actually looked pleased, typing something into his phone. "THE SWAP QUEEN RESCINDED THE ORDER OF JUDGEMENT. BERRY, YOUR BROTHER CAN SEE YOU AGAIN."

Berry perked up hearing that. It was unbelievable. "IT'S NOT A TRAP? SHE REALLY DID?!"

"NO, IT'S NOT A TRAP. RED AND SANS BOTH CONFIRMED IT. STRETCH WANTS YOU BACK FOR THE REST OF THE LABOR. IT SEEMS THEY'RE NOT MOVING HIM UNTIL THE BABY IS OUT."

"oh! okay!" Daemon hurried upstairs to pull off his clothes and replace them, relieved and excited.

Hope flooded Berry’s soul. He ran to the bathroom and cleaned his face, then went to the borrowed bedroom and pulled out a new shirt. He ran back to his lovers. 'I WONT HURT THEM,' Berry tried to convince himself.

When they were both back, Howl had one of the older leashes on hand, since the usual one was still at Stretch's house. He clipped it onto Daemon and held the handle. Daemon took Berry's hand with a smile, then ported them back to the embassy.

Vex still had Stretch in his lap, petting his skull softly and letting him squeeze his hand. Red was pacing, checking his phone. He glanced up.

"there you guys are! geez."

"God, you skeletons sure like an audience, huh?" Drills had her tongue stuck out as she felt the almost completely translucent ecto. At this point, it was hardly necessary, because the body was pretty visible. "Not much longer now, you three are late!"

Sans sat in a chair next to Papyrus watching, his attention switching between the monsters in the room. When the others were there he waved at them with a smile. "Red," he offered, hoping maybe with the others here he would unwind a bit, "you want to rest a bit before the main event?" He patted his lap.

Berry held Daemon’s hand, looking in awe at the silhouette of the baby.

"berry," Stretch whined while holding up his other hand. "bro, c’mere."

Blueberry almost tripped over his feet as he threw himself in his sibling's direction."I'M HERE,BROTHER."

Red came right over to Sans and sat in his lap, settling down. "yeah, sweetheart, thanks." Honestly, he was grateful. He was still pretty tired from his panic attack. Papyrus rubbed his back a little gently, always tender with his brother's datemate.

"HELLO, YOU THREE. ARE YOU ALL ALRIGHT?"

"YES, WE ARE FINE." Howl looked a little tipsy, but nobody looked willing to say anything about it. He settled in a chair nearby as well, and Daemon knelt down nearby Berry.

"you doing okay, stretch?" Daemon asked.

"HE'S FINE." Vex gently directed Berry to sit opposite Drills, who was pulling back her hand finally. She dug around in her bag and pulled out a few blankets, a few syringes, a small monitor, and vials of a few different colors.

“Before any of you freak out-” Drills said, looking at Vex directly as she spoke, “-these are only in case something goes wrong. I’ve got a few different substances here in case there are any specific deficits to the baby’s magic. They’re normally not necessary, but this is a weird birth, so I’m getting them ready to use fast if I need.”

Vex nodded curtly. She was a weird woman, and while he was Fell too, something about her gave him creepy vibes. But, nonetheless, she had been nothing but careful and concerned for the health of the baby, so he trusted that whatever she had was only to help, not to hurt.

Sans cuddled his datemate, rocking him gently and nuzzling his neck. Now that Red’s nervous energy no longer had him pacing, Sans let his soul project calm, love and warmth to Red. "i'm here for ya, redy." He kissed his cheek.

Red snuggled back, relaxed again, even purring softly. Sans was a wonderful beta, able to keep pace with him and also so very soft and comforting. The best of both worlds. "yeah, i'm alright."

"OF COURSE YOU ARE! WE ARE ALL DOING VERY WELL RIGHT NOW, AND THIS IS A HAPPY MOMENT. AND I WILL DEFINITELY NOT CRY WHEN THE BABY GETS HERE," Papyrus asserted. Red snorted softly, hiding his grin in Sans’s shoulder.

Berry’s nervous fingers gently stroked Stretch's face. He smiled down at his sibling. "IT WILL BE ALRIGHT, BROTHER. THE BABY IS LOOKING WONDERFUL. I HOPE YOU TWO PICKED A NAME."

Stretch tried to hide his worry behind a smile as he focused on breathing. "we did," he panted while squeezing his mate's hand.

"OF COURSE WE DID. WE CAME UP WITH A BRILLIANT COMPROMISE," Vex said proudly.

"you found a car brand that's also a food?" Red asked.

"WELL, YES."

"oh my god, boss, that's ridiculous."

"FUCK YOU."

Berry chided, "LANGUAGE. WE DON'T WANT THE BABY TO PICK UP THAT HABIT."

Stretch hissing laughter got louder, he hadn't heard Berry say that in years.

"APOLOGIES, BERRY," Vex said, though he didn't sound it, "BUT MY BABY WILL LEARN TO CURSE WITH PRIDE."

That made Red start to cackle a little. Howl rolled his pupils. Daemon giggled a little too.

Berry frowned and sighed. It was their choice, but he wouldn't curse around the child.

“Are you gonna actually tell us the name, by the way?” Drills asked, perking up. “Come on, I deserve to know! I wanna know!”

“YOU’LL KNOW THE SAME TIME AS EVERYONE ELSE, WHEN THE BABY IS ACTUALLY OUT,” Vex huffed.

“Boo! All this work and my reward is delayed! I didn’t even know there _were_ car brands that were foods!”

“IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT TO FIND SOMETHING GOOD AND I WILL NOT RUIN THE SURPRISE BECAUSE YOU’RE IMPATIENT.”

"YES, WELL, REGARDLESS OF THE CHILD'S NAME, IT WILL BE VERY LOVED," Howl said, wishing he had his knitting. Yeah, wow, he felt tipsy. He rubbed at his cheek a little, hoping he wasn't too flushed. Or at least that nobody cared right now.

"It's happening!" Drills announced, opening up one of the sterile blankets. The now translucent ecto was finally pulling back, thinned, ready to be released.

Sans gave a small laugh at their bickering and nuzzled Red some more. "stretch has good delivery."

Stretch hissed a laugh at the pun, and Berry giggled too. Red wheezed a little into his boyfriend’s shoulder.

“good one, sansy.”

“thanks, babe.”

A spike of pain ripped through Stretch just then. If it hurt this bad, he couldn't imagine it without the pain meds. He groaned and it turned into a scream. His grip was crushing his mate’s and brother's hands.

"WE’VE GOT YOU, STRETCH.” Berry put his other hand over his hand.

As Stretch screamed in pain, Vex tightened his own grip, squeezing back, gritting his teeth. "I'VE GOT YOU LOVE, IT'S OKAY. I'VE GOT YOU." His hand poured in more green magic, struggling to ease the pain.

Finally, the last of the magic snapped apart and splattered a little, and the newborn skeleton landed with a gentle clack on Stretch’s lumbar. Drills scooped it right up in the blanket to clean it of residual magic, grinning wide. "There you are, kiddo! Look at you, all your fingers and toes.”

The baby squealed and flailed, starting to cry instantly as babies did, eyelights not yet alight.

Stretch all but collapsed as the last of the magic was taken. He felt so drained and tired. His grip became loose and limp. He tried to slow his breathing by taking deep breaths. His eyelights were hazy.

"YOU DID IT. A HEALTHY BABYBONES." Berry picked up a clean rag and mopped Stretch's face. "WE'RE PROUD OF YOU."

Stretch let the calming green magic flow through him. He smiled up at them both.

Vex loosened his grip too, relaxing with Stretch, and watched the baby with teary sockets. "OH MY GOD, STRETCH. THEY'RE SO BEAUTIFUL."

“Just one second.” Drills felt up the baby’s forehead, checking their temperature, then examined some of the joints, dipping a finger just slightly into the magic flow. “Everything’s flowing nicely. I don’t need to use any of these medicines at all, they’re doing great!” Still beaming, she held out the baby.

Vex shakily took them, bundled in the blanket, and held them where Stretch could see and even touch. His aura seeped through the room again, gentler than before, protective and loving and satisfied on a deep, instinctive level. The newborn's loud cries settled as they started to absorb their father's latent energy and get more comfortable.

Papyrus wiped an errant tear, beaming.

Red was also definitely crying, holding Sans tight and staring at his nibling, his soul warming and thudding.

Sans held his mate close, tears dripping from his sockets too. "beautiful," He whispered in awe.

"yeah, so fucking beautiful..." Red wiped at his sockets, holding on tightly. His soul felt full near to bursting.

Daemon snuggled up to Berry, watching the baby with sparkling eyelights, purring low. Berry leaned into Daemon, an answering purr starting up within him as he looked at the baby stars in his eyelights.

Howl subconsciously twined fingers together and apart, rhythmic, feeling the texture of his soft gloves rubbing on his bones and pushing down nesting instincts. It was ridiculous to think about having his own child right now, there was far too much going on, and the mechanics of ‘making’ it would be a nightmare. But even so, just seeing one made his omega instincts rise up, his soul warm. He stayed quiet, watching from his chair without drawing attention to himself.

Stretch watch his mate with their baby. He was so happy that his eyelights sparkled. "of course they’re beautiful, they take after their dad."

The baby’s eyelights flickered on then, one regular white, the other a marbly mix of orange and yellow. Stretch’s soul skipped a beat seeing the yellow of justice swirled within his child’s sockets. He reached out and touched them. Everything leading up to the birth was blurry right now. He was having trouble remembering what happened. He just remembered his magic and gold. Then when he was in labor. He asked shakily, "they got the Judge’s magic?"

Vex flushed and chuckled softly at Stretch's compliment, holding the baby closer to let Stretch touch. His expression shifted to worry at the question. "YES…”

"Some," Drills clarified, adjusting her glasses. "Plenty of this big guy's too, and yours. But that yellow was all over for a while. I'll bet with a power like that, the kid's gonna be affected. No way to know exactly how for a while, though, they don’t exactly have magic control right now."

Stretch frowned, looking back at their baby.

Berry stopped purring and crawled forwards to Stretch. "I'M SO SORRY STRETCH AND VEX." He looked back at his nibling. "I DIDN'T MEAN FOR THEM TO GET HURT."

"you didn't do anything wrong, berry," Daemon reminded gently, rubbing his datemate's back.

"bro, stop." Stretch pulled Berry down on top of him in a cushing hug. "you didn't hurt me or the baby. the queen set the order. if the Judge did not share magic..." He trailed off.

Sans continued for him. "they wouldn't hurt an innocent. they gave a small piece of their ancient powers to the baby to save it."

"SO... THE JUDGE SAVED THEIR LIFE." Vex pet the little skull while the baby yawned, fully settled in their father's arms. He wiped at his tears again. "THANK THE STARS."

"whatever kind of power they might have, that's for later," Red said, wiping at his own sockets. "we've all got weird extra shit going on, right? doesn't make 'em any less cute and loved."

"WELL SAID, CHERRY!" Papyrus agreed, wiping at his own tears a little.

"YES, VERY TRUE AND TOUCHING. PERHAPS WE SHOULD GET YOU AND THE BABY HOME?" Howl suggested. "I'M SURE YOU'D BE MORE COMFORTABLE IN YOUR OWN NEST."

"Hey, hey, wait!" Drills was starting to pack up her things, delicately pulling the IV from Stretch's soul. "I did all this heroic baby work, I deserve to know the name! It’s born, you said you’d tell us when it’s born! Spill it!"

Stretch smiled. "please _espresso_ your opinions politely. their name is cappuccino aster russell."

Sans snickered at the joke. "oh, stretch."

Berry sighed. "and for short?"

Red snorted and hid his face in Sans's shoulder again to muffle his laughter. "that's a car name?"

Vex was too emotional to be irritated at his brother. "YES. PUCCI FOR SHORT."

"heh... cute..." Red turned his head to look again, soul still thrumming. "sansy..." His voice dropped quieter, too quiet for anybody but Sans and Papyrus to hear. His good hand found Sans's, their fingers interlacing. "can we... get married?"

Sans soul thumbed loudly and his skull colored. He leaned in and kissed Red deeply when the kiss broke he said just as quietly, "yes." Then he kissed Rad again.

Red kissed back, a few more tears gathering. Papyrus grinned wide, the only witness to the secret proposal, content to let them have a moment in silence while everyone was focused on the baby.

Drills, wearing a dumb grin, wrote the name down in a notebook covered in comic book heroes on the covers. "An appropriately unique name for a baby born to such weird bullshit! Cool! My work here is done!"

Berry nodded. "PUCCI IT IS, THEN." He pulled back and leaned back into Daemon. At Drills’ proclamation, he smiled. "THANK YOU FOR HELPING THEM.”

"YES, THANK YOU." Vex looked up at the fish woman. "I OWE YOU A GREAT DEBT."

"Psshh! Don’t say it like you’re gonna murder for me, dude, you can pay me for my medical work like a normal dude. But we'll talk about that later, skinny. I'm outies." She collected her things and left the room, whistling the Spiderman theme song.

Daemon snuggled Berry and kissed him, then got up. "let's get you home, okay? can i pick you up, stretch?"

"sure. thanks." He grabbed on to Daemon as he was picked up. He felt done like a wet noodle and was looking forward to a nap.

Sans nudged Red happily. "that sounds like a plan. red, you want to take your brother and the baby? and i'll take paps and howl?"

Berry shook his head. He didn't want Howl to stress himself out with touching. They had all had a rough day and Howl was still looking a bit tipsy. "NO YOU CAN TAKE ME. HOWL CAN RIDE WITH DAEMON. "

Daemon held onto Stretch carefully, princess style.

"ah, yeah... i'll take vex and little pucci. c'mere, bro." Red nuzzled Sans one last time, then went over to Vex and hugged him tight. He ported in the middle of said hug.

"YES, I WOULD PREFER TO GO WITH DAEMON, NO OFFENSE." Howl picked up the end of the leash and wiggled it in demonstration. Daemon ported him and Stretch away.

Papyrus got up and put a hand on Sans's shoulder. "CONGRATULATIONS, BROTHER," he whispered conspiratorially.

Berry gave a short wave as he watched them port. Honestly, he didn't want to leave their side, even though he knew it would just be a few moments. He walked over near the chairs that Sans and Papyrus had been sitting in. He almost missed the whisper. "CONGRATULATIONS ON WHAT?" he asked as he held his hand out for Sans.

"OH, DO NOT TROUBLE YOURSELF OVER IT RIGHT NOW, BERRY," Papyrus said brightly. "IT IS SOMETHING UNRELATED TO TONIGHT'S BIG HIGHLIGHT."

Sans squeezed Pap’s hand in thanks, then took Berry's hand too. "don't worry, berry. am i driving ya to your house or stretch's?"

"MY BROTHER'S PLEASE. THEY ARE MOST LIKELY WAITING FOR ME." Berry looked confused. "ALRIGHTY THEN… CONGRATULATIONS ANYWAYS."

Papyrus held on to both of them as Sans teleported.

At Stretch's house, Daemon carried Stretch up to his room and delicately laid him in his bed. "there you go, buddy."

"THANK YOU, DAEMON." Vex followed along inside with the baby, Red trailing along behind. "LOVE, DO YOU WANT ME TO GET YOU SOME FOOD? A SPONGE BATH? OR DO YOU JUST WANT TO SLEEP?"

"thanks daemon." Stretch yawned as he was set down. "babe, honestly i'm tired, but if you want to clean me a bit while i sleep, that's fine."

"THEN I'LL DO THAT." He gently settled Cappuccino in Stretch's arms and reluctantly pulled away to find a washcloth. Stretch cradled his little babybones, pulling some pillows on the other side of the bed just in case. Daemon left them be, going back downstairs.

Berry thanked Sans when they arrived at the house. He saw Howl collecting the other leash and came up to him. "HOW ARE YOU DOING ANGEL?" he asked, concerned.

Sans asked, "did anyone want dessert? red made some."

"dessert? yes please,” Daemon said, brightening up.

"ah, shit, right!" Red darted into the kitchen. "i made this all special. first slice is for sansy."

Sans smiled as Red went running past him. He called out, not wanting to ruin the surprise, "i'll leave it to you then."

Red came back with a gorgeous apple rose tart in the heart-shaped tin he’d bought with Berry, grinning wide and winking at Sans.

Howl made a noise of appreciation at Red’s tart, then looked back to Berry, rolling up the leash. "I AM ALRIGHT, BERRY, THANK YOU. I'M MORE TIPSY THAN I THOUGHT," he admitted. "I WILL STAY FOR A PIECE OF RED'S WORK, BUT THEN I WOULD VERY MUCH LIKE TO GO HOME AND LAY DOWN."

"OKAY." Berry was feeling pretty tired. It had been a chaotic day. "I THINK WE ALL COULD USE A NAP."

"IT'S A BIT LATE FOR A NAP, KITTEN, WE ALL JUST NEED TO GO TO BED EARLY, I THINK." He sat down. "THOUGH, I WOULDN'T BEGRUDGE YOU OCCUPYING YOURSELF HOWEVER YOU'D LIKE IN YOUR ROOM OR THE LIVING ROOM LATER ON WHILE I SLEEP."

Berry nodded his head, he didn't want to be alone, but Daemon would be there. "OKAY."

Red cut everyone a piece of tart, leaving two for Vex and Stretch, then passed them all out. "bone appetit, hehe."

Daemon giggled as he took his piece, then cut a forkful. The apple slices were all delicately and evenly cut, the pattern lovely. The flavor was strong, with hints of brown sugar, cinnamon, and even a bit of vanilla. It tasted like heaven.

Sans' skull was flushed blue the moment he smelt the tart. When Red brought him his piece he whispered, "this is payback for the mustard, isn't?"

Berry took the piece that was given to him and took a bite. "RED, YOUR BAKING IS ALWAYS AMAZING."

"heh, sweetheart, i made this before the mustard incident. this is just 'cause yer face." He winked again and kissed one bright blue cheek. Then he sat with his own. "thanks, berry blue bones."

"mhm, really good." Daemon ate his happily. Howl ate slower, but also complimented Red on the technique and delicacy. Papyrus offered his own praise and ate enthusiastically.

Sans knew he wasn't going to be able to eat his without moaning. He quietly put it in his inventory for later tonight.

Once they'd all eaten, Red cleaned up and nuzzled Sans. "i'll getcha home, paps. meet you at home, sansy?"

"THAT WOULD BE NICE, CHERRY, YES, THANK YOU."

Daemon snuggled Berry and waited for Howl to pick up his leash. "bye, guys."  
"GOOD NIGHT."

"NIGHTY NIGHT." Berry looked to his brother's room. "MAY I TELL THEM GOODBYE?"

Sans smiled at them all, "alrighty, red. see ya, fam." He ported out.

Red ported away with Papyrus in tow and a lazy salute to his forehead, leaving the poly there.

Daemon let go of Berry and nodded. "yeah, go ahead."

"CERTAINLY, BERRY."

Berry ran up the stairs, careful of the squeaky step, and knocked quietly on the door.

"ONE MOMENT."

Vex came opening the door after a few moments, dressed down a bit. "OH, BERRY. STRETCH IS ASLEEP, BUT DID YOU NEED SOMETHING?"

"EVERYONE IS LEAVING. I WANTED TO SAY GOODBYE, IF THAT IS ALRIGHT." He squeezed and twisted his fingers. "I WON'T WAKE HIM."

"YES, OF COURSE." He moved aside to let Berry come in. "I'D BE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT THE BABY WAKING UP, I THINK. STRETCH IS VERY WELL OUT."

Berry nodded and came in quietly. He went up to his brother, who was securely nested up in the bed, wrapped around the baby. He smiled happily at the sight. He really wanted to place a kiss on Stretch's skull, but was afraid of touching the nest.

He kissed the tips of his fingers and gently brushed them on his little brother's skull, then did the same to the baby, who cooed gently. Berry then took out this phone and took a quick picture. Once he was done, he walked over to Vex and whispered, "THANK YOU."

Vex settled back on the other side of the bed, phone in hand as he texted his assistants about needing time off. "YOU'RE WELCOME." He hesitated a moment before venturing, "ARE YOU ALRIGHT? YOU MUST HAVE BEEN VERY SCARED WHEN THE JUDGE GRABBED YOU."

Berry looked at the ground and a hand clutched his bandana. He said quietly, "I WAS." His other hand came up to sockets. "I THOUGHT THAT WAS THEN END. THIS DREAM WAS ALL OVER. I WOULD WAKE UP BACK IN THE SANITARIUM WHERE I BELONG."

The slightest of tremors rippled through his small frame as he squeezed the soft material. Howl's wonderful scent calmed him. It helped cement the idea that this was real. This wasn't a dream and wasn't going to be taken away. His family wouldn't let him return to the Sanitarium. "BUT IT WASN'T LIKE BEFORE. I WASN'T ALONE."

His hand fell from his eyes. There were tears lining his sockets "YOU ALL CAME FOR ME." He smiled, genuine and happy. "THANK YOU."

"OF COURSE WE DID. WE ALWAYS WILL. WE'RE FAMILY NOW." Vex wasn't the best at expressing himself, or being physically affectionate. His love language was gifts and quiet acts of devotion. Nonetheless, he awkwardly reached up and patted Berry's shoulder. "GOOD NIGHT, BERRY."

"GOOD NIGHT, VEX." Berry went back down the stairs and practically threw himself into Daemon's arms. One hand still held his bandana. "THANK YOU! THANK YOU BOTH!".

Daemon hugged him tightly and ported them home. "for what, sweetie?"

Howl let go of the leash and rubbed his cheek. "YOU HAVE NO NEED TO THANK US, BERRY. I MUST GO LAY DOWN. GOOD NIGHT, YOU TWO."

"GOOD NIGHT, MY ANGEL." Berry smiled sweetly at him, wishing he could hold Howl like he did Daemon. "I LOVE YOU."

“I LOVE YOU TOO.” He made his way upstairs and went into his room, quietly locking the door.

Berry cuddled into Daemon, answering his question. "FOR HOWL AND YOU KEEPING YOUR WORD." He kissed him. "FOR COMING FOR ME AND NOT LETTING THIS BE TAKEN AWAY."

Daemon went to sit on the couch with Berry, still holding him close. "you don't have to thank us for that, we were always gonna. we love you."

Berry snuggled in more and started to purr quietly. It had been a horrible and wonderful day. So many emotions. He took a few moments to enjoy the quiet and then asked, "HOW ARE YOU DOING, MY PUPPY?"

Daemon purred softly in return, petting gently. The question made his movements slow. "um... mostly okay, i think. really tired. i wanna sleep too."

"ALRIGHT," he flexed his hands in Daemon’s shirt, playing with the material. "DO YOU WANT TO SLEEP TOGETHER TONIGHT? WE CAN SLEEP IN MY ROOM OR YOURS,” he asked hopefully.

"i would love that. but if you wanna be up and about a little bit longer, that's okay."

"NO, I FEEL VERY DRAINED FROM EVERYTHING,” he admitted. "I DON'T WANT TO BE ALONE. BUT I NEED TO GET READY FOR BED." He yawned.

"alright. then we'll sleep in your room, okay? i'll lay down and you join me when you're all ready."

Berry climbed up the taller skeleton and kissed him. "THANK YOU, MY SWEET PUPPY." Then he went to shower quickly and get ready.

Daemon kissed his cheek gently, then went and grabbed his blanket from his room. He brought it downstairs and curled up in Berry's room. By the time Berry returned from his shower, he was already fast asleep.

Berry grabbed his old rough blanket and pulled it over his shoulders, then snuggled up into his normal spot in his datemates arms.

'NORMAL...' he thought. He breathed in his alpha's safe, loving scent and felt his warm arms. He nuzzled into Damon's collar. Howl's nurturing grape scent mixed wonderfully. It may not be other people's normal, but he was elated it was now his. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep.

* * *

Alone in his room, Howl lit up a cigarette. He didn't often smoke, it was more Daemon's vice. But every now and then, when he was particularly stressed, he couldn't resist the urge. He opened his window to let the smoke out, absently tugging on his soft glove with his other hand.

His arm ached with the phantom pain of Daemon’s claws, even though the wound had been healed. He couldn't be jealous. Daemon didn't hurt Berry at all, despite tackling him, and he was endlessly grateful. That last thing he wanted was for Daemon to hurt their sweet Berry, who didn’t deserve such pain. But sometimes, the insecurity got to him. The inadequacy. Being able to kiss them both on the mouth only that morning felt paltry now, with everything else that had happened.

He blew out softly into the night air, watching the smoke dissipate, and his eyes flashed. Something had to change. He thought about a new plan as the cigarette wore down, and then snuffed it out on a small ashtray. He left it there as he changed into soft pajamas and curled up in bed.

His bedroom door stared at him like it only did on the worst nights, when memories invaded too sharply to ignore. He gave in after the third time he imagined it opening and a tall figure creeping inside. He got up and double-checked the lock twice before managing to calm down enough to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary: Berry breaks down about what happened, and Daemon and Howl comfort him. Daemon contemplates the morbidity of his inner dragon and if he is a bad person. Howl gets himself more wine than he knows he should to help him cope. Berry and Daemon change and they all return to the embassy upon finding out the Judgement order was rescinded. Drills prepares medical supplies in case there are problems with the baby, and badgers Vex about a name. Sans comforts Red, who was anxiously waiting for their arrival. There is bantering about swearing around a baby. The labor ends and Drills checks over the baby to find nothing wrong with it. Everyone is very emotional about the baby being pretty, and Vex holds them. When their eyelights ignite, one is yellow and orange, prompting everyone to realize the Judge's magic had saved the baby. There is no telling how much the magic will affect them for now, but they all agree the baby will be well-loved no matter what. Stretch finally reveals that the baby's name is Cappuccino, or Pucci for short, and everyone groans about puns. Red secretly proposes to Sans, with Papyrus the only one to hear, and Sans says yes. Drills promises she'll bill Vex later and leaves, and the skeletons all arrange shortcuts back to the house. Papyrus quietly congratulates his brother. Berry overhears and asks what it's about, but Papyrus assures him it's not important this second. Vex and Stretch get settled in bed with their child, and everyone else eats Red's rose apple tart downstairs before leaving. Berry goes upstairs to kiss his sleeping brother and the baby goodnight after assuring Vex he is okay. At Howl and Daemon's house, a tipsy Howl goes to his room, and Berry and Daemon cuddle for a few moments before getting ready for bed. Alone in his room, Howl contemplates how little he can touch his datemates, and how inferior he feels, while having a smoke. He thinks of a new plan and obsesses over his bedroom door's lock before going to sleep.


	18. And I Wonder Where these Dreams Go When the World Gets In Your Way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the other shoe drops, and there's lots of writing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody!
> 
> I hope you had a wonderful week. Be sure to kudos, comment and update your bookmarks if you haven't. 
> 
> If you want to get updates to you email make sure to subscribe to the series, GetMcDunkedOn or myself, Diyami.
> 
> Also their is a wonderful oneshot side story of everyone's fave kustard:
> 
> Sticky Sexcapades - by GetMcDunkedOn, for Diyami
> 
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/29255655#bookmark-form
> 
> Be sure to check it out and leave a comment there letting us know how you like it! - Diyami
> 
> Chapter tags: Internal berating, mild eating disorder, political scheming, therapy session, brief mention of previous self-harm, mention of unethical science, summary of Berry's whole traumatic experiences before, during, and after the Sanitarium

Berry woke up in Daemon's arms again. He could get used to sleeping here. The timid monster gently glided a hand along the warm ecto that his datemate seemed to always have summoned.

He focused on the vibrant green; it kept his mind off yesterday. He didn't want to think about the close call they had had. He had promised to believe in Howl and Daemon. That faith had been rewarded when they came for him. He needed to focus on their future.

He idly danced his fingers along the beautiful emerald color. He felt bad that he made Daemon sleep on the floor, but the bed was too close to a nest and his being around made it even more so. He sighed and nuzzled him. 'I SHOULD ASK MS. CANDY FOR HELP WITH NESTING,' he thought.

Daemon nuzzled in sleepily as Berry pet his midriff. Even though it was ecto, it had a gentle firmness to it, and a smoothness, gently sculpted abs. As he blinked open his sockets, he yawned quietly. "morning, berry..."

"MORNING PUPPY," He played more with the beautiful flesh. "DO YOU THINK HOWL IS UP? WE COULD MAKE HIM BREAKFAST."

"mm... he's always up before me." He smiled. "sorry, you'd have to set an alarm or something to get up before him." He said nothing about how Berry was touching him, though it made his soul warm. He didn't want to scare Berry away.

Berry sighed. "WE SHOULD GET UP AND GET READY FOR THE DAY." He kissed Daemon and went to get up.

Daemon stretched as he sat up. "we can do it tomorrow, if you want? you'll have to help me, i'm no good at it."

"SURE, PUPPY. WE CAN LOOK IN THE COOKBOOK YOU GAVE ME YESTERDAY AND SEE WHAT WE WANT TO MAKE HIM." He was going to leave to go get his bathing stuff and clothes, but stopped. He turned and took Daemon's hand. "PUPPY? ARE YOU OKAY?"

"that sounds great." He was about to go head up to his room too, but paused when Berry took his hand. Gently, he held it in both of his. "i think i'm okay, yeah... i'm just really, really glad you're not hurt."

"I WOULD DESERVE IT. I HURT EVERYONE YESTERDAY. I COULDN'T HELP STRETCH OR THE BABY." He had been doing so good not thinking about it. It was giving the voice fuel. "IF I COULDN'T HAVE HELPED YOU..." He started to cry.

~~You deserve to be punished.~~

"no! berry, no, this wasn't your fault." He pulled Berry close and hugged him tightly. "it _wasn't._ and you helped me so much, and everything turned out okay! nothing is your fault, it's all that wicked queen's fault."

The hated voice berated him more. Berry pressed himself into Daemon's warmth. "HE WAS HURT BECAUSE OF ME. BECAUSE I BAD AND BROKEN, PUPPY." He held up his hand and tried to light his green magic. "I CAN'T HEAL ANYMORE. I HAVEN'T SINCE THE DOCTOR. IF VEX DIDN'T GET THERE..." He shivered.

~~Useless. Good for only two things~~

"I COULD HELP YOU AT LEAST." He hugged Daemon tight.

"no, berry, that's not true!" He held on tighter. "you aren't bad. you know you're not bad, you've been saying what ms. candy told you to everyday. you know you're not bad. and even if your healing doesn't work, you're not broken. besides... don't think about 'what if's.' he came. we all came. because we're all a family."

He nodded into Daemon's chest. "I'VE BEEN TRYING REALLY HARD." He wiped his sockets. "I FORGOT TO LAST NIGHT, THOUGH." His family did come, and that made his soul hurt less. He believed in them like Ms. Candy said, and they proved it. 'THEY WON'T LET ME BE TAKEN AGAIN,' he thought. "I LOVE YOU PUPPY." He pulled on the dark orange crop top to get Daemon to lean down and kiss him.

"it's okay, yesterday was hard. you can just say them today and mean it twice as hard." He pet Berry's skull gently. "i love you too." He willingly leaned in to give Berry a little kiss.

Berry kissed him, soft and loving. Daemon always made him feel better. He wanted to make Daemon feel as loved as he himself felt. He didn't want the kiss to end, so this time he did something he’d never done before. He opened his mouth, and his tongue licked hesitantly on Daemon's teeth, waiting for entrance.

Daemon blushed when he realized what Berry was doing. Oh, this was new. But it made his soul beat a little faster, and he willingly parted his teeth to let Berry in. He didn’t dare do anything himself though, not even press his tongue to Berry in return. He didn’t want to pressure his datemate, or make Berry think they had to do anything more than he’d already done.

Berry explored Daemon gently. He knew it was tempting, but Daemon opening and letting him in, and giving Berry control of the encounter was a blessing. It was nothing like the scary violence forced on him by the guards that, with the slightest hint of temptation (or even without it), would rip away his feeling of safety and self-worth. This was the opposite: Calming, loving, safe.

His magic tongue touched his lover's, sending a pleasant tingle through him. It was so different from anything he had felt. The sweet but tangy taste of barbecue sauce with a hint of honey mesquite hidden in the smoky flavor. It overloaded Berry's senses. He felt like he could easily get drunk on it. The familiar magic that was associated with love, safety and family washed away all thought of doubt, pain and the ‘what if,’ leaving only his alpha.

Daemon still didn't much press, more letting Berry explore and take the lead. He held onto his shorter lover, but didn't clutch or squeeze, making sure Berry could pull away as soon as he wanted. His pupils were hazy little hearts as they kissed deeply for the first time, his soul pounding in his chest.

Berry pulled back, cheeks dusted with magic and his eyelights hazy, watching his lover's face. Then he laid his head on Daemon's chest. His body was shivering. He liked that. Daemon liked it too. This was dangerous, close to tempting.

'I thought about hugging, kissing and sleeping with him. But it never leads to temptation, Daemon’s a good alpha,’ he told himself. He wasn't useful to his brother or the baby, yet he could be useful and loved by his datemate by kissing him, holding him.

'They came for me, they want me. I can't tempt Daemon, so this isn't bad, right? It's being useful.' He told himself. He took a deep breath. "DO YOU WANT FOR ME TO KISS YOU LIKE THAT MORE, PUPPY?"

Daemon's eyelights were still hearts as he stroked Berry's side. "only if you want to, honey. it was really great, but i'd never force you."

He gripped Daemon's shirt tight, but nodded, letting the smell and lingering taste of his alpha enthrall his mind. Telling himself he was safe in his powerful arms. It kept the horrible voice at bay. "WE SHOULD ALL GO SEE MS. CANDY TODAY."

"i dunno if we have an appointment, but we can talk to howl about it, yeah." Daemon nuzzled gently. "you go ahead and go shower, okay? i'll meet you in the kitchen." One last gentle kiss before he headed up to his room to get changed.

Berry nodded and relaxed into the familiar chaste kiss. He went to his closet to pick out some clothes before showering.

Daemon headed into the kitchen and saw Howl setting out breakfast. He looked a bit tired, like he didn't sleep very well.

"master?"

Howl looked over as Daemon knelt carefully in front of him, and rubbed under one socket.

"I'M ALRIGHT, PUPPY. I HAD A LITTLE TROUBLE SLEEPING, BUT I WILL BE FINE. DON'T WORRY."

"do you need anything?"

"ONLY COFFEE AND BREAKFAST. THANK YOU."

"okay." He got back up off the floor and sat down at his seat.

Berry came in not too long after. He tried to put on a cheerful smile. "GOOD MORNING,” he said as he entered the room. He saw his shorter datemate looking tired. "HOWL..." He came close to him and asked, "ARE YOU OKAY?"

"GOOD MORNING, BERRY. I AM ALRIGHT, I JUST DIDN'T SLEEP WONDERFULLY." He gestured to breakfast. "WE HAVE A FEW THINGS TO DO TODAY, SO WE WILL NOT BE GOING TO WORK."

Berry nodded, his hand twitching, wanting to comfort Howl. "OKAY. DO YOU WANT TO HOLD HANDS AND TELL US WHAT WE ARE DOING TODAY?" He held his hand out. "AND I THINK WE SHOULD SEE MS. CANDY TODAY IF WE CAN."

He looked down at Berry's hand, then carefully laced his own. "PERHAPS LATER TODAY, WE CAN TRY TO HOLD HANDS. BUT YES, I DID MAKE ANOTHER EXTRA APPOINTMENT WITH MS. CANDY ALREADY. HOWEVER, I WOULD LIKE FOR YOU TO EAT BEFORE WE TALK ABOUT WHAT ELSE WE HAVE TO DO. I KNOW IT IS... MORE DIFFICULT FOR YOU TO MAKE YOURSELF EAT IF YOU ARE WORRIED ABOUT SOMETHING."

Dread creeped into his soul, but he tried not to look upset and pulled his hand back. "OKAY, ANGEL." He went to sit at the table, scooting closer to Daemon and holding his hand.

Daemon held his hand and squeezed gently as he started in on his food. It was omelets, with cheese and onions and 'ham.' They each had a slice of toast with butter, as well.

Berry looked at the food. It smelled wonderful. He closed his sockets for a moment, then picked up his fork and ate slowly/ He thought, "I AM GOING TO MAKE HOWL HAPPY. I AM GOING TO EAT THIS."

Daemon ate as well, and Howl sat down to do the same in between gulps of strong black coffee. Breakfast was a quiet affair, but Daemon did occasionally gently encourage Berry and mention how delicious the food was.

Breakfast had never been this quiet. Berry's anxiety was building, and he was having a hard time eating. The apprehensive skeleton played with his food a bit between bites, but he was getting in down. When Daemon asked about the food, he said, "IT'S VERY DELICIOUS. THANK YOU, HOWL."

"YOU'RE VERY WELCOME, BERRY. HAVE YOU LEARNED ABOUT OMELETS IN COOKING CLASS?" Maybe it was better to have menial talking. He was just trying everything to figure out what worked best. "THE TRICK IS ALL IN HOW LONG YOU WAIT TO FLIP THEM."

A smile pulled at Berry's teeth and he shook his head, "NO WE HAVEN'T LEARNED YET." He settled a bit and ate another bite then asked, "WHEN DO YOU KNOW ITS READY?”

"PERHAPS SOON, THEN." He took another gulp of coffee. "THE COLOR CHANGES, AND YOU CAN TELL THAT IT'S GETTING A BIT SOLID. YOU WANT TO FLIP IT WHEN IT'S GETTING SOLID, BUT NOT QUITE THERE YET."

Berry nodded, eating while Howl talked. He didn't notice he stopped playing with his food. "THAT SOUNDS LIKE IT TAKES A LOT OF PRACTICE."

"IT CAN. BUT IT IS SIMPLER THAN SOME OTHER THINGS, NOT TERRIBLY TECHNICAL. YOU MERELY HAVE TO PAY ATTENTION."

He smiled happily, "WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN YOUR OMELETS HOWL?" He continued eating, the talking helping distract him a lot. He thought, 'MAYBE TOMORROW DAEMON AND I COULD TRY TO MAKE IT FOR OUR ANGEL?"

"I LIKE WHAT I'VE PUT IN THEM NOW, BUT PROBABLY ALSO PEPPERS. I DIDN'T WANT TO ADD PEPPERS IN YOURS IN CASE IT WAS TOO SPICY."

Berry nodded. "WHICH TYPE OF PEPPERS? THERE ARE LOTS."

"FOR MOST CUISINE SUCH AS THIS, BELL PEPPERS ARE USED. RED, GREEN, YELLOW OR ORANGE, THEY ARE ALL QUITE SIMILAR."

Berry looked down in surprise. His breakfast was almost gone. "I LIKE BELL PEPPERS,” he said with a shy smile.

"DO YOU? MY APOLOGIES FOR ASSUMING, THEN. NEXT TIME, I WILL ADD THEM INTO THE OMELETS, HOW IS THAT?"

"THANK YOU FOR THINKING ABOUT ME. I WOULD LIKE THAT, THEY ARE SWEET AND JUST A SMALL HEAT." He finished the last of his food, smiling. "TOMORROW MAYBE WE CAN MAKE BREAKFAST FOR YOU."

"THEY ARE." He smiled back. "OH, WOULD YOU LIKE TO? THAT IS FINE, KITTEN, I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE YOUR COOKING."

"i'll help!" Daemon piped up.

"CERTAINLY. I LOOK FORWARD TO IT."

Berry was smiling and kissed Daemon's cheek. He held up his empty plate. "THANK YOU FOR THE HEAVENLY BREAKFAST, ANGEL."

"YOU'RE VERY WELCOME, KITTEN." He smiled. Daemon jumped up to take everyone's plates and clean up. Berry smiled happily back at Howl, then got a towel and dried and put the dishes away. Daemon was grateful for the help. Howl nursed his coffee, and when they were done cleaning up, he pulled out his phone. "I'M AFRAID WE MUST TALK NOW."

Berry nodded, laced his fingers with Daemon's, and followed him back to the table, an ominous feeling creeping back into his soul.

Howl sighed to himself, moving to a news website. "THERE WAS A NEWS REPORT THAT BROKE THIS MORNING ABOUT THE... 'ATTACK' AT THE EMBASSY." He hit play on the video to let them hear the Swap Queen's words to the public.

"The attack on the monster embassy directly resulted from an out-of-control Sully, Blueberry Aster." She showed a picture of him. "Underswap omegas have a defect. They enchant and corrupt other monsters, bend them to their will so they have no choice. Blueberry Aster gave in to his defect long ago. He was given experimental treatments a few years ago. He eventually completed the treatment and was allowed to go home. Unfortunately, it has failed him. He was to return to the treatment program over a week ago, but his return was blocked by Howl Coatl, former captain of the royal guard of Fellswap." A picture of Howl and Daemon from his press conference was shown next.

"I had an order of Judgment on him. My Judge brought him to the embassy when the attack happened. The monster who was enthralled by the Sully then attacked. Not only the embassy, but his own ally." There were pictures of Howl injured with his magic tekko kagi claws out, ready to attack the dragon, Gore still fighting Daemon.

"Monster and human lives have been put in danger by this temptress. The Sully needs to be taken in and given treatment and learn to resist his basic instinct, to keep all of monsterkind safe." She slammed her hand on the podium. "You may have heard Howl's press conference. You heard the lies the Sully told him, but action speaks louder."

A picture of the destruction of the building was shown.

"Blueberry has corrupted Howl and Daemon. He has bent them to his will, made brother turn against brother. He is a Sully and needs to be taken in for training, or committed to permanent care if he cannot show progress with the updated treatments. His being at large and tempting monsters like the dragon is putting everyone at risk."

Daemon watched the pictures come up with dismay, slowly shrinking down in his seat. "master, i'm so sorry," he said, his voice almost a whine. "it's all my fault, she's... she's using _me_ because i lost control... i'm sorry..."

Berry was trembling, his arms wrapped around himself, looking at the floor. Tears were cascaded down his face.

~~Filthy! Sully! Corrupting everything you touch!~~

"NO, IT WAS ME... BECAUSE YOU LOVE ME... IT'S HURTING YOU. I'M HURTING YOU." His breathing was becoming shaky. "I DIDN'T MEAN TO BE BAD. I DIDN'T WANT TO HURT YOU. I LOVE YOU TWO." He was sobbing by the end of the statement.

"NEITHER OF YOU ARE TO BLAME," Howl asserted, standing up and pressing a hand on the table. "THIS IS ALL _HER._ SEE HOW SHE USES THIS TRAGEDY FOR HER OWN AGENDA TO THE PUBLIC, EVEN AFTER REMOVING THE ORDER IN PRIVATE? DIGGING THROUGH THE SECURITY TAPES TO FIND A GOOD PICTURE OF THE DRAGON ATTACK? SHE IS USING WHAT HAPPENED FOR HER OWN AGENDA EVEN THOUGH SHE KNOWS HER ACTIONS ARE THE CAUSE. POLITICS ARE ALL ABOUT THESE KINDS OF LIES, AND WHO IS MORE CONVINCING. _WE_ MUST SIMPLY COUNTER HER ATTACK. THIS IS NOT NEARLY OVER. I WILL _NOT_ LET HER WIN."

Berry’s sobs quieted to small hiccupy breaths. "H-HOW?" he managed to ask.

"FIRST, WE HAVE THERAPY TO GO TO TODAY." He went to pour himself more coffee. "THEN WE WILL HOLD A PRESS CONFERENCE. DAEMON, YOU MUST SPEAK."

Daemon wiped under one eye, holding Berry close, and nodded miserably. "o-okay..."

"BERRY, IF POSSIBLE, YOU SHOULD AS WELL. TELL YOUR STORY. TELL WHAT THE SANITARIUM IS _REALLY_ LIKE."

The smallest skeleton shuddered, and it made his bones rattle loudly, as he thought about the promise he’d made. He would do this, even if it was the last thing he wanted to do. He knew he had to. The queen’s press conference had been damning. "I'LL TRY..."

"I REALLY HATE TO PRESSURE YOU, BERRY. I KNOW IT IS DIFFICULT. IF THERE WAS ANOTHER WAY, I WOULD TAKE IT." He came to sit back down. "I CAN HELP YOU WRITE SOMETHING TO READ OFF OF, SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO THINK ON THE SPOT. AND WE WILL BE THERE."

"YES, PLEASE." Berry took a deep breath of Daemon and squeezed his bandana to smell Howl’s sweet scent, trying to calm himself.

“It’ll be okay...” Daemon was holding on tightly.

Stretch’s ring tone blared from his pocket. He and Daemon both jumped, not expecting it. His brother tried to never be up this early.

Berry took out the phone and answered. "HELLO?"

"Berry, have you seen the news?" Stretch asked carefully. He was scared of how Berry would react to it.

"YES, HOWL JUST SHOWED US." He gripped Daemon tight.

"you're not going back berry. don’t even think about it, kay bro? vex, howl, daemon, red, sans, papyrus and me, we’re all going to work hard to stop it."

Berry looked to Howl and said, "I BELIEVE IN HOWL/" He knew he couldn’t tell Stretch details, just in case.

"that’s good, bro. if you need to talk, we’re all here for you."

"THANK YOU, BROTHER. I LOVE YOU, BUT I NEED TO GET READY FOR THE DAY."

Stretch took the dismissal. "love you too, bro."

Berry ended the call. Daemon had listened quietly, nuzzling Berry a little. He purred low, as if trying to comfort them both.

When the phone call ended, Howl grimly drank more of his coffee. "WE SHOULD GET TO MS. CANDY'S CLINIC SOON. DO YOU NEED TO DO ANYTHING BEFORE WE GO?"

Daemon's purring helped his soul settle. He shook his head. "NO."

"VERY WELL." He drank the last of his coffee. "THEN WE'LL GET GOING. PUPPY, THE LEASH."

Daemon nuzzled Berry, then reluctantly got up and fetched the leash. He clipped it to his collar and held out the other end, which Howl took.

Berry came to stand by Daemon and Howl, rocking on his heels and twisting his fingers nervously. Daemon took hold of Berry again and nuzzled him gently with another purr, then ported them to the clinic. At least it was quiet there, the atmosphere always tranquil and welcoming. Berry was given the same paper as always, and Howl and Daemon were each given one too this time, ones with different questions.

Berry was feeling exhausted, sad, and scared. He cuddled into Daemon and didn’t lift his face from him. He was trying so hard to believe in Howl and keep telling himself it would be okay. But the Queen had placed a lot of doubt in him. Everyone knew now what he was. They saw his picture in the press conference. They knew his name. Someone would send him back. Howl and Daemon would try to stop them, and once again, their love would get them hurt because of him. His soul hurt. He whined into Daemon.

~~Horrible, filthy, good for only two things…~~

The fear, doubt, and self-loathing had the voice loud today. He didn't look at the receptionist and made quick, sloppy work of the paperwork, then buried face back in the safe scent that was Daemon. He wasn't sure if Ms. Candy would be willing to see him anymore. 'SHE KNEW I WAS SULLY BEFORE,' he told himself, trying to believe she would still accept them after she saw the Queen's speech.

Howl filled out his paper quickly, but seriously, honest with each answer. Daemon took the longest, absently snuggling Berry while he worried over which numbers to circle. But soon, all three papers were in, and they were ushered into Ms. Candy's office. She looked troubled, scanning the papers. As troubled as a stick of licorice with only minimal facial expression could look, anyway.

Berry chanced looking up at her when they came in, then hid his tear-stricken face back in Daemon. He hoped she would help Daemon and Howl, at least. They were not bad. They didn't cause the problem.

~~Shut up and do as you're told, Sully.~~

Berry knew he could do that; he had a lot of practice trying to be invisible.

As they all settled in, Ms. Candy put down the papers and knitted her fingers together. "I assume you three saw the press release?"

"YES," Howl said tightly.

She nodded with a frown. "I'm so sorry all of this has happened to you. I admit, this is the most public sort of difficulty I have ever had to help with, and my area of expertise is in no means political... I cannot offer much advice on what to do. Only how to help yourselves cope."

"THAT IS FINE, I EXPECTED NOTHING ELSE."

She nodded, then looked at Berry. "Shall we start with you, Berry? You seem particularly upset. Let's talk about it."

He was shocked to be addressed. He turned his head to look at her. "O-OKAY." He wiped his face, not knowing where to start.

"Why don't we start with what actually happened? The Swap Queen's press release is, I assume, only part of the events of the day."

He nodded. "THE QUEEN ORDERED ME TO BE TAKEN BACK. HOWL STOPPED HER., SO SHE ORDERED MY BROTHER, THE JUDGE, TO TAKE ME IN THE NEXT TIME HE SAW ME." He plastered against Daemon and twisted his fingers painfully. "WE HAD BEEN KEEPING ME AWAY FROM STRETCH. IT'S BEEN VERY HARD ON US BOTH."

He explained what happened on Valentine's day at the party, how he had ruined everything. Being grabbed and taken by his precious little brother, who did not have a choice in the matter. How he had caused Stretch and the baby to get hurt. How he was useless, not being able to heal Stretch or the baby. That when he saw Howl hurt, it hurt him to know he had caused all of this by being a filthy Sully. That maybe the Queen was right, he didn't deserve this, even if he wanted Howl and Daemon so much he didn’t want to be alive without them, he was hurting them in horrible unspeakable ways no one, especially monsters he called his loved ones, deserved. So he ran to the enraged Daemon hoping for the best, but prepared to accept the consequence of being a useless, filthy, worthless Sully.

He also told her how wonderful it felt that they came for him. They kept their promise. That they were willing to still keep him despite all the trouble he had caused. And that made his soul hurt less. He was emotionally exhausted by the end of it.

Daemon held onto him the entire time, purring to try to soothe him. At the end, Ms. Candy surveyed her notes and nodded slowly.

"Well, this is a lot to go through. But it's good you see that they came for you. You know they love you, and I'm sure neither of them blames you. Yes?"

"OF COURSE WE DON'T," Howl asserted.

"nu-uh. it's that queen's fault. and mine, i lost control..."

Daemon's cuddling helped Berry more than he could explain. It kept him from breaking down completely and shutting down. He wiped at his eyelights and gave a weak watery smile. "YES, THEY ARE AMAZING." His smile was genuine when he said that. He meant it with all his heart. He squeezed Daemon and his bandana. "THEY HAVE TOLD ME MANY TIMES THEY STILL LOVE ME AND THAT IT'S NOT MY FAULT. BUT I CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL IT IS. THE VOICE MAKES IT HARD TO STOP THE DOUBT."

"IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT EITHER," Howl told Daemon, who looked down.

"So from what I understand, you both have voices." Ms. Candy leaned in a little. "It is important to sort out what is and isn't your fault instead of blindly blaming it on any one person. Berry, you were not quite careful with the plates, tugging the scarf down. This is true."

Before Howl could bristle, she held up her hand and continued.

"However, acknowledge that the order itself was the fault of the queen, and the voice is the fault of Gaster. For right now, regardless of what else is going on, it is important to focus on what _you_ can do. Your attention lapsed, so instead of ridiculing yourself, focus on making sure you are aware in situations which may become dangerous. Be aware of where you step, what you pick up, and who is around. Don't let the voice tell you that you are useless. Instead, focus on how you can make things easier. And recognize that sacrificing yourself does _not_ make it easier, because you know how much they love you."

Reluctantly, Howl nodded.

Berry was quiet for a few moments. "I TRY. I TRY REALLY HARD ALL THE TIME. I WANT TO BE GOOD... USEFUL." He took a deep breath of Daemon and Howl's scents and nuzzled Daemon.

"I know. But often what you try is tied in to what you've been told you're not supposed to do. What they taught you in the Sanitarium. I want you to always be conscious of how different things are out here. Instead of thinking about what they told you is a burden, think about what might put a smile on your family's face. Or, in other words, don't think about what you _shouldn't_ do and struggle not to do it. Instead, think about what you _should_ do and strive for it. Frame it positively, not negatively. For example, you might think 'I shouldn't speak up because I'm a burden.' Instead, I want you to think, 'I should speak honestly because they'll appreciate it.' Or instead of saying 'I shouldn't make a mess,' say, 'I should do a little tidying, I'm sure they'll appreciate it."

Berry nodded, playing with his bandana. "OKAY. I'LL DO MY BEST." His soul was feeling lighter now that he’d gotten a lot of his worry out in the open.

"Good. Now, Daemon, it is not your fault that you have this voice, or that your lover was in peril. But you should have fail-safes, if Howl cannot talk you down."

Daemon nodded slowly, looking down.

"I recommend breathing exercises, and to find ways to occupy your hands or mind when things are stressful. Obviously, you must act quickly in an emergency, so distractions wouldn't have helped then, but breathing exercises might."

"okay..."

Berry nuzzled him and purred. "I'LL HELP YOU WITH THEM, PUPPY."

"okay." He nodded, purring back. "okay, i'll do my best. i wanna be better too."

"Very good." She smiled.

"i should tell you..." He rubbed his arm a little. "i promised i'd say something. i used to, um, hurt myself. with cigarettes."

"Do you still do it?"

"i did it a few days ago. i wanted howl to heal me. that's why i did it, so he'd heal me. but it's not good... i so i need to not do that either."

"Yes, you're right. Hurting yourself hurts him, I imagine."

Howl nodded.

"Have you been asking to hold hands?" she asked.

"not as much, but, um, a few times."

"Alright. Well, it's a start. Remember you can always ask. And if it's the feeling of healing magic that you like, perhaps a comfort object?"

"YOU MEAN LIKE HOW BERRY'S BANDANNA AND DAEMON'S COLLAR HAVE MY INTENT?" Howl mused. "PERHAPS IN SOMETHING ELSE? YES... I THINK I CAN DO THAT."

"you'll make me something else?" Daemon perked up.

"YES. I'LL MAKE YOU BOTH SOMETHING NEW."

"That sounds like a good idea." Candy nodded.

Berry smiled happily and said with a purr still in his voice, "THANK YOU, ANGEL."

"YOU'RE WELCOME."

Candy wrote some more notes. "And what about you, Howl? How are you coping?"

Howl laced his fingers together. "I WILL ADMIT, I AM STRUGGLING. I CANNOT HOLD HANDS AS OFTEN AS BERRY OR DAEMON MIGHT WANT. I WAS ABLE TO GIVE THEM EACH A KISS YESTERDAY MORNING, FOR VALENTINE'S DAY, BUT GIVEN EVERYTHING ELSE GOING ON, IT IS NOT ENOUGH."

"It's still progress, Howl, these things take time."

"YES, I KNOW. BUT AT THIS RATE, IT WILL TAKE TOO LONG TO GET AHOLD OF MYSELF. MERELY TRYING TO HOLD HANDS MORE OFTEN IS NOT ENOUGH. I MUST TRY SOMETHING MORE."

Candy hummed quietly. "Well, there are some other techniques to help with haphephobia... Medication is one method. Hypnotherapy is another. Neither are things I can offer, myself, but I can refer you to people who can provide these treatments."

"I ALREADY CONSIDERED MEDICATION AND SET AN APPOINTMENT FOR MYSELF," Howl said with a nod. "I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HYPNOTHERAPY."

"Well, it is a method of helping you to relax and then offering suggestions to help you combat your automatic responses. With a few specifically tailored suggestions, you can even teach yourself to do it when necessary. It is much like guided meditation, but it involves magic, if you go to a monster for it."

"HMM, I SEE... THAT IS SOMETHING TO LOOK INTO, THEN."

Berry's was amazed when he heard about that. "MS. CANDY, COULD THAT HELP ME TOO?"

She considered. "It is... possible. But suggestions that go against ones you've already been giving through outside conditioning are more... difficult to do than suggestions that help with an automatic response like haphephobia, or an urge, like, for example, smoking."

"OKAY..." He looked to Howl. "I'M SORRY I INTERRUPTED. I GOT EXCITED.' He had hoped it could help him with nesting. Daemon deserved to sleep on a bed and not the floor.

"It is not a no," she assured. "But I am not sure how well it would work. There is no harm in trying."

Howl nodded slowly. "WE CAN BOTH TRY. I DON'T KNOW WHOM TO GO TO, THOUGH, SO I WILL TRUST YOUR REFERRAL."

"Very well." She flipped to a new page in her notebook, then wrote down a name and number and tore it out to hand over. Howl took it and tucked it into a pocket.

"THANK YOU."

"YES, THANK YOU," Berry said. If it only helped Howl, that was still wonderful. He cuddled into Daemon's warmth.

"You're welcome,” Ms. Candy said. “Is there anything else you would like to go over in today's session?"

Howl considered, looking over at Berry.

Berry nodded. "I HAVE TWO THINGS I WANTED TO ASK YOU ABOUT. ONE IS I'M SCARED OF NESTING. AT THE SANATORIUM I WAS GIVEN CORRECTIONS FOR EVEN TOUCHING A NEST. BEDS ARE THE SAME AS NESTING. SOFT. COMFY. THEY LEAD TO TEMPING IF SHARED." His old breaks ached just thinking about it. He rubbed his arms, trying to soothe the phantom pain. "I SLEEP ON THE FLOOR. IT'S NOT FAIR TO DAEMON TO SLEEP ON THE FLOOR WITH ME WHEN WE LAY TOGETHER, BUT I CAN'T SLEEP IN ONE.” He shivered. “HOW CAN I WORK ON IT?"

Candy considered that, tapping her fingers together. "Well, are you able to touch a bed even a little right now? Or can you not bear to even brush against it?"

"WHEN I'M ALONE. I SLEEP UNDER IT," Berry admitted. "IT HELPS CALM MY OMEGA INSTINCTS TO REACH OUT AND TOUCH THE COMFORTER. BUT AFTER A FEW PETS, LESSONS COME FLOODING BACK. IT MAKES MY BONES ACHE WHERE THEY HAVE HEALED BACK TOGETHER."

"So you feel physical pain when you touch it too much? Have you considered having someone give you green magic while you touch it?"

"I DO." Berry shook his head. "THE BREAKS HAVE HEALED, SO NO."

"It might be worth it to try. Green magic and healing intent are not just used to heal obvious breaks. The intent behind the magic may help ease pain in general. You may also consider trying to make a nest on the floor for Daemon, and get used to him being in one, even if you are not in one yourself? Then you can slowly touch it more over time."

He thought about that. "OKAY. WILL YOU HELP ME WITH THAT PUPPY?"

"yeah. i can do both those things." Daemon smiled, seemingly calmed down from talking about his own issues. "i don't mind sleeping on the floor much, but i want you to be able to be comfy."

Berry nuzzled him. "THANK YOU." He looked at Ms. Candy. "THE SECOND THING IS MAGIC. MINE HASN'T WORK SINCE THE SANITARIUM. THEY HAD SUPPRESSED IT AND I LEARNED NOT TO USE IT. I HAVEN'T BE ABLE TO USE GREEN MAGIC SINCE THEN. I WANT ACCESS TO MY MAGIC."

He held up his control hand and it flickered green, but wouldn't stay lit. "DO YOU THINK YOU CAN HELP WITH THAT?"

"Hmm, I am not sure..." She wrote that down as well. "It may not be psychological, it may be physical. If you really want to do it, and you have all the intent, but you still cannot, I do not know why that may be."

He nodded in acceptance and took a deep breath of Daemon's safe scent. Deep breaths in and out. "THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING, MS. CANDY."

"You're welcome. I cannot solve all of your problems, but I do hope these sessions help you ground yourselves and look towards making progress. Even with everything else going on, you are all getting better, and you should be proud."

Berry smiled at her words. She smiled back at him. "Good luck with your retaliation, too. I'll see you in about a week."

Howl stood and nodded to her, then led the way out, taking the leash. Daemon followed, still snuggling Berry.

Berry was feeling a lot better, but hid his face in Daemon's shoulder, not wanting anyone in the waiting room to recognize him.

* * *

They ported back home without stepping outside. Once there, Howl looked at the referral he was given, pulling out his phone. "I WILL MAKE AN APPOINTMENT IMMEDIATELY."

Berry looked up after feeling the familiar pull of the port. He looked over to Howl. "ALRIGHT, ANGEL. COULD WE MAYBE SIT TOGETHER AFTERWARDS? MAYBE KNIT AND RELAX A BIT AND WATCH SOME FOOD NETWORK?"

"WE CAN FOR A LITTLE WHILE, BUT THEN I MUST PREPARE FOR A NEW PRESS CONFERENCE," he warned. "AND IF POSSIBLE, YOU SHOULD WRITE A SPEECH. THE SOONER WE COMBAT HER LIES, THE BETTER."

He didn't want to do it. He thought of his promise. 'HOWL AND DAEMON ARE HERE NOW. MY FAMILY IS HERE TOO.' The scared monster fingered his collar. He remembered that it proved Howl believed in him. He told himself, 'I WILL BE BRAVE.' He nodded to his angel, courage blooming within him due to Howl's bravery. "I'LL START IT AFTER OUR BREAK."

"ALRIGHT, GOOD. I'M PROUD OF YOU." He called up the number he was given and wandered off to set up an appointment.

Daemon nuzzled again before letting go. "m'gonna have a smoke, berry. i'll be just outside."

Berry nodded. He went to the couch and looked at his hand. He tried to light his green magic and sighed. He tried not to think about it. 'FOCUSE ON THINGS YOU CAN DO. MAKE THEM POSITIVE,’ he told himself. He thought about his file; maybe it said something? He pulled out his phone and called Red.

The phone was picked up after three long rings, with Red sounding semi-distracted on the other end. "yeah, berry, what's up?"

"HI, RED." Berry reminded himself he was not being a burden by asking for help, even if Red seemed busy. He had his paper due soon, but... Berry squeezed his bandana and asked, "DO YOU HAVE TIME TO TALK?"

"aw, for you, bro-in-law? always." Red focused in to the conversation more. "what's on your mind?"

Berry stilled himself. It had already been a hard morning, but after not being able to help Stretch or Pucci, he wanted to know if there was a way to get it back. He didn’t want to be useless to them again. "I WAS WONDERING... WHEN YOU READ MY FILE, DID SAY ANYTHING ABOUT BLOCKING OR DAMAGING MY MAGIC?"

"oh." His voice turned serious. "well, there was nothing in particular about voluntary magic output. it didn't look like they were testing for it. but your flow seemed a little abnormal. why?"

Berry explained about his magic. How it hadn't worked since he left the Sanitarium, but he didn’t want to bother anyone about it or see a doctor. But after Stretch got hurt and almost lost Pucci, he felt useless. "I DON'T WANT TO SIT BY AND WATCH MY LOVES DIE. I WANT TO BE ABLE TO HELP. I ASKED MS.CANDY ABOUT IT AND SHE SAID INTENT IS NOT THE PROBLEM."

Red hummed to himself. "i'm not sure exactly why... it could be gaster's influence... you also got a lot of broken bones, it might disrupt the mana lines... i'd have to take a sample to be sure."

His bones rattled at the idea of a sample. A holepunch sample was the doctor's favorite. "HOW WOULD YOU TAKE THE SAMPLE?"

"eh, a needle, probably. but if you really can't stand doing it that way, then, ah... your spit might do."

"I’D RATHER DO THE SPIT, BUT IF YOU NEED TO USE A NEEDLE..." He gripped the phone tight. He didn't want to be useless to his family again. "I'LL DO IT."

"it just might be a cleaner sample that way. if i could get it from a joint, and even near your soul, it could tell me more about if it's, ah, area-specific."

Berry sighed and placed his hand over the hole in his chest. At least Red would have easy access. "CAN HOWL OR DAEMON HOLD MY HAND DURING IT?"

"sure they can, blueberry bagel. don't wantcha scared or anything. i get it, i'm kinda nervous around medical stuff too, when i'm the one needing it."

"OKAY THEN. I HAVE TO ASK HOWL WHEN WE CAN DO IT."

"yeah. just lemme know when. late afternoon some day's probably best. after school but before work."

"OKAY. THANK YOU, RED."

"you're welcome. just text me to let me know, ok? you need anything else?"

He pulled his knees up to his chest. "DID YOU SEE THE NEWS?"

He paused for a moment. "ehhh... yeah, i did... i, uh, assume howl's gonna do somethin' about it?"

"YEAH. WHERE GOING TO HAVE ANOTHER PRESS CONFERENCE. I'M GOING... TO..." he took a deep breath. "TELL MY STORY."

"yeah?" He sounded cautiously hopeful. "alright. i believe in ya, berry. i'm sure you'll do great. i'll watch and cheer ya on from where i'm at."

"THANK YOU, BROTHER. THAT MEANS A LOT TO ME."

He grinned. "yeah, no worries. alright, i gotta go, i'm uh... i'm doin' somethin'. but text me, ok?"

"OKAY. I WILL. STAY SAFE."

"bye."

They each hung up. Howl came back into the room right about then, putting his cell phone away. "WE HAVE AN APPOINTMENT FOR EARLY NEXT WEEK."

"OKAY." Berry squeezed his bandana. "I CALLED AND ASKED RED IF HE SAW ANYTHING IN MY FILE ABOUT MY MAGIC. HE SAID HE’S NOT SURE, BUT HE CAN RUN SOME TESTS." He shivered and huddled down, trying to look small. "I JUST NEED TO TEXT HIM WITH A TIME AND DATE YOU’RE FREE. AFTER HIS SCHOOL BUT BEFORE WORK."

"OH, WELL, NOT TODAY, WE HAVE TOO MUCH TO DO. SUNDAY, PERHAPS, SINCE SATURDAY IS GAME NIGHT.”

Berry nodded. "I'LL TEXT HIM ABOUT IT." He reached for the remote and handed it to Howl, offering a weak smile. "IF YOU WANT TO PICK SOMETHING. I'LL GO GET OUR KNITTING."

"OH, I HAVE MINE HERE." He pulled it out of a bag he'd grabbed while upstairs. "BUT YES, YOU GO GET YOURS." He took the remote and turned on the Food Network channel, of course.

Berry ran off to his room and got his new project: A blanket. He wasn’t sure who he would give it to yet. But it would take a while to make, anyway. He came back out and sat with his datemate. They’d all had a very hard morning. "HOWL, I DON'T FEEL LIKE I TELL YOU THIS ENOUGH, I LOVE YOU. YOU'RE SO BRAVE AND KIND. THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO AND FOR LOVING ME."

Howl settled in with his knitting. Berry's words made him look up. His soul warmed a little, and a rare smile came upon his face. "THANK YOU, BERRY. I LOVE YOU TOO. YOU DON'T NEED TO THANK ME FOR THAT, THOUGH. I'M THRILLED TO HELP YOU."

Berry's soul fluttered happily when Howl smiled at him. He settled in and knitted. Daemon came back in from smoking looking calmer and snuggled up to Berry.

* * *

They relaxed until Howl made a quick lunch, and afterwards, Howl set about writing his speech.

"BERRY, DO YOU WANT TO WRITE YOUR OWN AND HAVE ME LOOK OVER IT, OR DO YOU NEED ME TO WRITE IT?"

Berry squeezed his kitting. "I CAN TRY, BUT WHAT SHOULD I SAY? IS IT WHAT HAPPENED AT THE SANITARIUM? "

"YES. BUT ALSO WHAT HAPPENED THAT YOU WERE SENT THERE, IF YOU CAN. THE WHOLE STORY, STARTING FROM THAT FIRST HEAT. SUMMARIZED, OF COURSE."

He shivered and nodded. "OKAY. WHERE DO I STOP? WHEN I WAS SAVED BY STRETCH?"

"YOU CAN SUMMARIZE A LITTLE OF AFTER, TOO. HOW YOU THOUGHT PEOPLE WOULD TREAT YOU. HOW YOU WERE SCARED TO GET HELP OR TELL ANYONE. HOW WE ARE YOUR FAMILY NOW."

"OKAY." Berry took a deep breath and let it out slowly. His voice was soft as he asked, "DAEMON, CAN WE SIT TOGETHER WHILE I WRITE IT?"

"yeah, berry, of course. i can help too, if ya want." He nuzzled.

Berry nodded. "THAT WOULD BE NICE." He went and got some paper. When he came back he had the end of his mechanical pencil between his teeth and Daemon's blanket. He laid the blanket down and made it into a nest shape. His hands trembled and bones ached with phantom pains. "LET’S MAKE YOU A COMFY PLACE." It wasn't much of a nest, just a fluffy blanket bunched up. But it was the closest he had come to trying to make one in a long time.

Daemon watched, a little troubled. "you don't have to push yourself, berry... not if it hurts. i'll be okay."

He was shaking, pulled his arms around himself, rubbing the aches. His voice was still soft. "I JUST... WANT TO GET BETTER FOR YOU ALL." He knew he was pushing himself with everything today, but he wanted to be useful. He crawled into Daemon's lap. "I'M SORRY. I'LL TRY TO CALM DOWN AND TAKE IT SLOWER."

"i know you do, berry, i know. but i don't want you to hurt yourself." He held on tight. "that'll only make me sad."

"OKAY PUPPY." Berry cuddled his love. He rubbed the aches some more and let Daemon's scent help calm his mind and the voice. Once his shaking stopped, he relaxed a bit. "I LOVE YOU, PUPPY."

Daemon rubbed at the aches too, pressing in green healing magic. "i love you too. i don't want you to hurt... i want you to feel good and warm..."

Berry purred as the green magic dulled the pain. "YOU ALWAYS MAKE ME FEEL BETTER, MY PUPPY." He reached up and touched Daemon's face. "YOU'RE WARM AND LOVING." He leaned up and gave him a sweet kiss.

"i'm glad." He kept up the green magic as he returned the sweet kiss. "that's all i want."

When the kiss ended, Berry rested on his powerful alpha for a bit. Once he was feeling a bit more centered and calm, he said, "I SHOULD GET STARTED."

Daemon nodded, nuzzling gently. "yeah, you go ahead. i'm here to help when you need it."

Berry grabbed the mechanical pencil and papers and grabbed a random book to write on before crawling back into Daemon's lap.

He started with an introduction: His name and a comment that he was a Sully. That made him frown. He had been saying for a while that Sully was a made up word. To write it felt wrong after all the work he put in to try to believe that he wasn't. It felt wrong. He added, ‘according to Underswap laws.’ That felt a little better. He paused before writing the next part. He took a deep breath of Daemon's lovely smoky scent.

Daemon watched and nuzzled gently. "you're doing great," he whispered.

"THANK YOU, LOVE."

With a shaky hand, Berry wrote about his first heat. How he felt when the guards didn't stop it and joined in. How he begged to be given a chance. That he had learned his lesson; he would lock himself away until it was over. But they took him to a lone cell and locked him away until the Judge could see him. He admitted his crimes of ignorance. Because of this, his time in stripes was cut brutally short. They sent him to the Sanitarium. His broken family was shattered again.

He put the papers down. They were spotted in tears. He cuddled into Daemon. "I NEED A BREAK."

Daemon held on to him, soft and warm, petting him gently. "it's okay. you're doing so good. you can take a little break."

Berry listened to Daemon's soul beat strong and sturdy, letting the warmth and gentle petting ease the ache in his own soul.

Daemon was happy to dote on him and kiss him. "you don't have to go into details if you don't wanna. i mean, it shouldn't be super long anyway, right? just do what you can, and that'll be enough."

Berry nodded. When his tears stopped, he went to the paper again.

He wrote about the treatments. Having the lines of the mantra beaten into him. How the Sullies were made to feel unsafe and violated at the will of the guards, all to make them infertile. That Sully were beaten to their last HP, bones broken, electrocuted for trying to touch a nest. He told of all the monsters whom he saw fall, that their dust was tossed in trash and taken away. A few lucky ones were claimed by their families, but he didn't have any adult family, so he had been kept. To earn his unwanted room and board, Berry was forced into being a test subject. The doctor used him for private experiments. Ripped apart his bones, leaving a hole over his soul for easy access. He almost melte before being claimed by his now adult brother. Monsters are made of dust, magic, and hope. The Queen’s program destroyed his hope, broke his magic, and left him wanting to dust.

But his family had picked up the pieces of his shattered soul and had gently been piecing him back together.

Daemon gently coached him on what parts he should skim over and what parts to go into a bit of detail on. He kept petting and snuggling. Berry listened and made the edits, Daemon’s strength and guidance helping from falling apart as he wrote.

Eventually, Howl came back out of his office, his own speech in hand. "HOW IS IT GOING, BERRY?"

Berry wiped at his sockets. "I THINK IT'S READY FOR YOU TO EDIT IT." He held out the papers.

"VERY WELL, I WILL DO SO." He took the papers. "I'LL TYPE THEM TO MAKE IT EASIER." He reached out to briefly squeeze Berry's hand, then took the papers back into his office.

Daemon snuggled Berry again. "you did so good."

Berry's soul fluttered when Howl squeezed his hand. "THANK YOU, LOVE." The contact ended too soon, and Berry curled into Daemon's warmth. "I COULDN'T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU." He nuzzled his chest. "CAN WE SLEEP TOGETHER TONIGHT, PUPPY?"

"aw, i'm sure you could've. but that's ok, you don't gotta do anything like that without me." He kissed Berry's skull gently. "yeah, we can, if that's what you want."

"I WANT TO. I LOVE SLEEPING WITH YOU." Berry purred. "IT MAKES BOTH OF US FEEL GOOD," he said happily. "I JUST WISH YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO SLEEP ON THE FLOOR."

"honestly, berry, i keep telling you, i don't mind." Daemon shrugged. "i kneel on the floor sometimes instead of sitting on the couch, when i'm playing good puppy for howl. and i've slept in trash before. the floor is fine. it's carpet, and there's a blanket, so it’s soft enough. and you're there, which is the most important part."

Berry was sad to hear that Daemon had slept in the trash. He knew how that was. "IF YOU DON'T MIND, I'LL TRY NOT TO WORRY SO MUCH." It was hard. The smaller skeleton would try not to bring it up again. "BUT YOU DESERVE BETTER. YOU AND HOWL DESERVE ONLY THE BEST."

"i really, really don't mind. i'm ok with a lot of things. i just wanna sleep cuddled up to you, and i don't want you hurting. that's the last thing i want, ever. it hurts me when you hurt... like, physically, it hurts me. does that make sense?"

Berry nodded. "YEAH." he purred a little louder, wanting Daemon to be happy.

"okay." He purred back, gently petting again. They relaxed together while they waited for Howl to finish his editing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary: Berry and Daemon consider making breakfast for Howl, but it must be the next day because Howl gets up early. They kiss, with tongue for the first time, and comfort each other about the events of the previous day. Howl is very tired when they reach the kitchen, and both of them express concern. He tells them they have a therapy session and more bad news, but it should wait until after breakfast. They chat a bit in an attempt to keep Berry relaxed enough to finish his food, and Howl agrees to let them make him breakfast the next day. After they eat, he plays a news video, showing the Swap Queen claiming that Berry had enchanted Daemon with magic to make him go berserk and destroy the embassy, even hurting his own brother. Daemon is extremely upset, and he and Berry both blame themselves. Howl insists it is her fault, and states they will all hold another press conference, and Berry should speak. Berry is nervous, but agrees, and Howl offers to help him write a speech beforehand to make it easier. They go to therapy, where Ms. Candy assures them that they are not to blame and talks Berry through feeling useless, Daemon through alternative to self-harm and how to keep himself calm in stressful situations, and Howl through seeing a psychiatrist and hypnotherapist to speed his fight against his haphephobia. Berry decides to also try hypnotherapy to help himself be able to touch nests, because he feels bad Daemon sleeps on the floor. When they return home, they relax for a bit. Berry calls Red and asks him to find out why he can't use green magic, and Red says he needs samples of Berry's magic, which they agree to do that Sunday. After some more relaxing, Howl goes off to write his speech, and Berry writes his own, with Daemon holding him and helping him write. Howl takes it to edit, and Daemon again assures Berry he doesn't mind sleeping on the floor, because he doesn't want Berry in pain.


	19. A Weaker Sense and No Constraint, Now My True Self Shows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Daemon is a good boy and Cat is a bit of a menace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you all for the kudos and comments!  
> I hope you all love the chapter. Let us know in the comments we love to talk with you!
> 
> Also if you have read the kustard side story you should it supper cute and funny!
> 
> Sticky Sexcapades  
> Summary:  
> Red and Sans try to have a grand ol' time with some lube and 
> 
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/29255655  
> 
> 
> Chapter tags: politics, public speaking, crossdressing, mild eating disorder troubles, talk of child combat training, allusion to previous sexual assault, talk of child experimentation

After about a half hour, Howl came back out with some papers.

"I'VE EDITED YOUR SPEECH AND TYPED IT ALL UP SO IT LOOKS NICE AND NEAT. PLEASE LOOK IT OVER AND SEE IF YOU WANT TO CHANGE ANYTHING." He handed them over. A few parts had been condensed, summarized more efficiently. Likewise, a few statements were expanded upon a little, namely the ones about his emotions.

Berry read it. "IT'S GOOD." He wiped at his sockets and handed it back. "WHEN ARE WE DOING IT?"

"YOU KEEP IT." Howl pushed it back. "A FEW HOURS FROM NOW. WE CAN HAVE DINNER, BUT ALSO, YOU MAY WANT TO PRACTICE READING IT ALOUD TO HELP YOUR NERVES."

The magic drained from Berry, leaving him pale. He felt dizzy and a little in shock. He pulled the papers close. "I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE A WHILE TO SETUP A PRESS CONFERENCE."

"NO, NO. THE SOONER THE BETTER, THAT'S WHY WE WROTE THESE IMMEDIATELY. I AM SORRY, BERRY. I KNOW IT'S SHORT NOTICE. BUT WE CAN'T JUST LET HER SLANDER GO UNCHECKED." He shook his head. "IT'S DOWNRIGHT DANGEROUS, ESPECIALLY SINCE SHE HAD PICTURES OF US."

Berry whined but nodded. He really thought he’d have more time.

"I'M TRULY SORRY."

"it'll be okay, berry. we'll both be there,” Daemon said. Berry nodded, hiding in Daemon. He would do it. He had to, but he didn't have to like it. Daemon rubbed him and kept purring.

"DO YOU WANT DINNER SOONER OR LATER?"

"LATER, PLEASE." Berry didn't think he was going to eat much. He wanted to put it off disappointing them.

"ALRIGHT. YOU RELAX FOR A BIT, BUT IF YOU CAN, TRY TO PRACTICE? I'M SURE IT WILL HELP."

"ALRIGHT," he said weakly. He breathed in the sweet smokiness of Daemon. Once he felt more centered, he pulled the papers up and practiced. Daemon stayed there with him, purring, offering comfort, being his audience. Howl listened for a while too, despite looking uncomfortable at some details.

Berry wanted to do his best for his datemates even though his hands were shaking, but he knew he wouldn't make it through the speech without physical support, so he asked, "IS DAEMON GOING TO BE ABLE TO HOLD ME... OR AT LEAST MY HAND?" He really wanted both of them to, but Howl would be busy running it.

"of course i can hold your hand!"

"YES, THAT SHOULD BE FINE."

Berry settled a bit, feeling a bit better. He practiced a few more times.

Eventually, Howl made dinner. Nothing too fancy, since they were so busy, but it still tasted yummy. Neither one of them seriously pushed Berry to eat, though. It was not the best time to force him.

Berry picked at the food and was so glad they didn't pressure him about it. He did end up eating half the meal. Afterwards, he took a shower and put on fresh clothes. He made sure there were no wrinkles in them. He donned the gloves that Howl gave him on Valentine's day. He didn't want to get them dirty, but he wanted that extra layer of protection. Howl's wonderful love and protectiveness encasing him. Berry squeezed his hands, feeling the wonderful softness, loving intent, and sweet grape sent. He straightened his bandana before picking up his speech and going out to meet them in the living room.

Howl had gotten dressed up in his armor, and even Daemon was dressed nicer. Daemon was on his leash, which Howl had ahold of. Daemon held out his hand for Berry with a smile. Berry couldn't help, but smile back at his datemate and took his hand.

"READY?” Howl asked. “LET'S GO."

Daemon ported them. They arrived inside an office in the embassy, where some cameramen and reporters were setting up.

"DO YOU WANT TO SPEAK BEFORE OR AFTER ME, BERRY?" Howl asked.

"BEFORE?" He just wanted to get this over with before he gave in to the building nervousness.

"VERY WELL." He nodded. Some directors came over and looked over their appearances, and gave a few quick tips on how to stand and where to look. Reporters were all settling in, human and monster alike. There were whispers, but several people looked friendly, and some even approached Howl and saluted him, giving reports on the setup.

Berry scooted over into his datemates more and asked shakily, "AM I GOING TO HAVE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS?"

"NO, BERRY, I WILL BE ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS," he assured. "UNLESS YOU WANT TO, THAT IS."

He quickly shook his head and said, "NO."

"THAT'S FINE, KITTEN. DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT."

"master is used to public speaking, he'll make sure everything goes well," Daemon assured.

Berry nodded and squeezed his bandana, giving an unsure smile to Howl. He really wanted to be held, but he didn't want to wrinkle their clothes right before they went on TV. Daemon kept hold of his hand, soothing his nerves.

"Ready, Captain?" one cameraman asked. Howl smoothed out his clothes one more time.

"YES. I WILL DO A BRIEF INTRODUCTION, AND THEN BERRY WILL SPEAK, THEN MYSELF AND DAEMON."

"Yes sir! Cameras rolling in one minute!"

Everyone hurriedly got into place.

Berry had a death grip on Damon. His papers in his other hand were being crushed. He couldn't believe what he was about to do. He was about to tell everyone. Perfect strangers about what happened to him. He took a deep breath, trying to calm down. The voice was getting louder. He stepped closer to Daemon to breathe in his smoky scent, trying to quiet it.

Daemon held onto him and smoothed out the papers as best he could. "breathe, berry. i'm here." He purred under his breath. "it's okay."

The cameraman counted off while Howl stood in front of the podium, then pointed when they went live. Howl was all properness, one hand on the podium, as if he wasn't secretly standing on a step-stool to be tall enough.

"GREETINGS, CITIZENS OF EBOTT CITY. I'M SURE MANY OF YOU SAW THE PRESS RELEASE HER MAJESTY SWAP QUEEN TORIEL SPOKE IN EARLY THIS MORNING. LIKEWISE, I'M SURE YOU'VE SEEN SOME OF THE DAMAGE DONE TO THE EMBASSY DURING THE MISHAP LAST NIGHT. WE ARE HERE TO CORRECT THE BLATANT LIES TOLD BY HER MAJESTY, AND OFFER YOU THE TRUTH OF WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THE SO-CALLED SULLY IN THE SWAP KINGDOM. THERE HAVE BEEN MANY ASSUMPTIONS THROWN ABOUT, AND MANY MISCOMMUNICATIONS. I PROPOSE YOU LISTEN TO A STORY COMING FROM INSIDE THE SITUATION ITSELF. THE TRUE EVENTS THAT TAKE PLACE IN THE SANITARIUM."

He then stepped back and beckoned Berry.

Berry’s sockets were large, like an owl’s. He didn’t take a step until Daemon squeezed his hand. Then he stepped on up to the podium, just a bit shorter than Howl, Daemon at his side. He put the papers on the stand. "...Umm. Hello?" The mic made a loud feedback and he flinched and swallowed thickly. Daemon gave his hand another squeeze. "My name is..." All the eyes and the cameras were looking at him. He was so nervous that he forgot his own name. "Berry." He looked at the paper. "Um, Blueberry Aster."

He glued his eyes to the paper and started reading.

Everyone was quiet as he read his speech, the reporters all enraptured with their tape recorders and notebooks. But there were, occasionally, gasps and murmurs.

Daemon’s closeness helped. Berry squeezed his hand back.When he finished, he had tears glistening in his sockets. He wiped at his eyes and stepped down.

Daemon gave him a brief hug as he stepped down. The crowd of reporters was speechless as Howl stepped back up to the podium.

"SO NOW YOU KNOW THE TRUTH OF WHAT HAPPENS TO OMEGA IN SWAP CULTURE. CAN ANY OF YOU HONESTLY BLAME SOMEONE BARELY OUT OF STRIPES FOR NATURAL HEAT PHEROMONES? THIS ASSERTION THAT THEY BEWITCH WITH THEIR SCENTS IS UNFOUNDED. Regarding THE INCIDENT LAST NIGHT, THE QUEEN WAS PARTIALLY CORRECT. THE COMMAND SHE GAVE HER JUDGE - WHO WAS HEAVILY PREGNANT AT THE TIME, I MIGHT ADD - FORCED HIM TO TAKE BERRY HERE. THE STRESS AND SITUATION DID CAUSE AN ALTERCATION. ANYONE FROM FELLSWAP ALREADY KNOWS A BIT ABOUT DAEMON'S POWERS."

Daemon looked down, gripping Berry a little more.

"BUT PUT YOURSELF IN MY BROTHER’S SHOES! BERRY HAS NOT TEMPTED US EVILLY, HE IS MERELY A SWEET, CARING OMEGA WITH A BRIGHT SMILE AND PLENTY OF LOVE FOR HIS FAMILY. OF COURSE WE FEEL ATTACHED. ASK YOURSELF, IF SOMEONE DIRECTED THE KIDNAPPING OF YOUR MATE, RIGHT UNDER YOUR NOSE, HURTING BYSTANDERS IN THE PROCESS, WOULD YOU NOT BE UPSET? WOULD YOU NOT BE ANGRY? IS THAT SO UNBELIEVABLE, IF THE ALTERNATIVE CLAIM IS BEWITCHING MAGIC STIRRING UP A CRAZE? THIS IS CLEARLY VICTIM-BLAMING, AND I HAVE A DUTY NOT JUST TO MY FAMILY BUT TO JUSTICE AND SOCIETY TO PUT A STOP TO IT. WE ARE ON THE SURFACE NOW, ALL OF US. DO NOT LET PROPAGANDA DECIDE FOR YOU. REMEMBER WE ARE FREE, OUR LIVES ARE BETTER. WE MONSTERS ARE MADE OF LOVE, HOPE, AND COMPASSION. PERHAPS IT IS TIME EVERYONE REMEMBER THEIR COMPASSION."

He paused for a moment, turning the last page of his notes.

"I WILL NOW TAKE QUESTIONS."

There was a flurry of hands and calls to him.

Berry blushed when Howl described him. At the closing of Howl's speech, he felt so proud of him. Howl was so strong and brave. He leaned on Daemon. The sudden noise scared him as he remembered they were there.

Howl answered some questions, mostly details about what happened at the embassy. A few were about his relationship with Berry, which he was semi-open about, providing harmless details but not going into anything private. Eventually, someone called out a question towards Daemon.

"Can you turn into a dragon and prove you're not normally dangerous?"

Daemon looked surprised, then nervous.

"um..."

He glanced at Howl, who gave him a grim look, then stepped forward. Howl stepped down and moved back, allowing Daemon to be front and center. He didn’t need the step stool, so he stood behind it and leaned in to reach the mic. He wasn’t as nervous as Berry was behind the mic, but he didn’t have the same confident ease as Howl, either. This wasn’t his first time, but he usually left it to his brother.

“if you must know… the transformation isn’t usually voluntary. i could do it if i wanted to, but i wouldn’t really have control even if i did it on purpose. it…”

He gripped the podium, took a deep breath, then went on.

“i’ve done it before, underground, multiple times. the picture the swap queen showed, of my brother injured by me… that wasn’t a very serious injury, and he doesn’t hold it against me. when i am in that form, it’s hard for me to recognize him as my brother. the dragon is angry, always angry, and feels superior, so it doesn’t like to listen. but, usually, because i don’t want to be the dragon, because i want to be good, i can control it. howl is my master, my collar owner.”

He tugged his collar, showing it off.

“in, in our culture, it means something good. it means he is responsible for me, and i respect him, and let him guide me. as an alpha, my instincts are to be the one in charge, but alpha aggression could cause problems. it is because he is an omega, because he is level-headed and focused on family and equality and prosperity, that he can better take charge. i am really very proud to be in his collar. and i feel bad i hurt him, but it wasn’t because of berry. it wasn’t because berry told me to do something like that - he never did! it was only because the dragon _never_ wants to listen. to anybody. my father was a bad man, and he gave me this problem, i never wanted it. i’m a good boy. i promise. and howl is a good omega, and a good master, and berry is a good omega too. i, i love him! so… wouldn’t you be angry, too? if your lover was taken away from you? right in front of you? it wasn’t fair, i couldn’t stop him from being taken away, so i got angry. it was bad the dragon got out, but i’m good, and my feelings for berry are good! and…”

He gripped the podium even tighter again, glancing back at Berry.

“and tempting isn’t real. because berry could give of his scent all he wanted, or bare his neck, or, or do any of those things you call tempting, and i would still only do what he says is okay, because i respect him and don’t want to hurt him! he can’t tempt me because i _know_ it’s wrong to touch someone who doesn’t want it. anyone who doesn’t know that… anyone who says they can’t help themselves, they’re just…”

He stopped himself abruptly, loosening his grip, then looked back at the cameras.

“the swap queen doesn’t know us. she doesn’t know me, or my master, or even berry. she doesn’t know that all we’re doing is living together, being happy together, watching tv together, eating good food and playing games sometimes and trying to recover from bad things that happened to us. we’re normal. we’re just like anyone else. i’ll help rebuild the embassy. i’ll apologize to everyone i scared. i’ll go better at keeping the dragon inside. but i was never bewitched, a-and i won’t let her tell everyone that i am bad, or that berry is bad! so… that’s all…”

Daemon stepped back away and hid his face in Berry a little. Berry hugged Daemon reassuringly and rubbed his datemates back and whispered, "YOU ARE SO GOOD. YOU ARE WONDERFUL."

“thank you, berry,” he whispered back, relaxing and purring a little.

Howl nodded in approval, pleased, and returned to the podium.

“NOW, PLEASE DIRECT THE REST OF YOUR QUESTIONS TO ME. YES, YOU NEXT, YOU MAY SPEAK.”

The questions went on, and a few people got pushy trying to ask Berry or Daemon. But Howl kept reminding them to ask him and repeating himself if necessary. But finally, after a while, he held up a hand to stop more calls.

"THAT IS QUITE ENOUGH. IT IS GETTING LATE, AND THE QUESTIONS ARE GETTING VERY PERSONAL. I WILL END THIS HERE WITH ONE LAST STATEMENT FOR THE RECORD. TO ALL SWAP MONSTERS, I BEG YOU TO WATCH THIS OVER AGAIN, TO LISTEN TO THE STORY OF YOUR FELLOW CITIZEN. TO ALL OTHER MONSTERS AND HUMANS, I BEG YOU TO SPEAK OUT AGAINST THIS LAW. AND TO ALL OTHERS CALLED 'SULLY,' WATCHING AND SCARED TO SPEAK UP, I ENCOURAGE YOU TO TRY. THE MORE VICTIMS SPEAK UP, THE MORE WE CAN DO TO HELP YOU. IF YOU FEAR FOR REPERCUSSIONS, KNOW THAT I WILL PROTECT YOU. LET US END THIS HORRIBLE LAW TOGETHER AND STOP THE TERRORIZING OF INNOCENT OMEGAS. THANK YOU."

He stepped back and there was applause. An anchor spoke for a minute or two, and then the cameras cut off.

Berry held on to Daemon, Amazed that Howl had encouraged others to get help and offered to protect them too. It made his soul warm and happy. Howl was the best omega. He wanted to reach for him to hug him. He hugged Daemon tighter to stop himself.

Someone came up and praised Howl for doing well, saluting. Howl thanked him graciously, then returned to his lovers.

"LET'S GO HOME."

"yes, master." Daemon ported them back, then let out his breath slow. "we did it."

"WE DID?" WE DID." Berry said with a little relieved giggle. "YOU BOTH WERE MAGNIFICENT, BUT NOW WHAT DO WE DO?"

"NOW WE RELAX. I'M VERY PROUD OF YOU, BERRY." Howl unclipped the leash and folded it up, then turned to Berry to offer him a smile. "YOU DID VERY WELL."

Berry blushed. "THANK YOU ANGEL. BUT YOU WERE MAGNIFICENT."

"AH, OF COURSE," he said, waving a hand. "I DID AMAZING, AS ALWAYS. BUT I AM USED TO IT. YOU ARE NOT. SO YOU WERE VERY BRAVE."

"THANK YOU." Berry's skull was bright blue and a small smile was on his face. "MAY WE RELAX AND HOLD HANDS, LOVE?"

"YES, I WOULD LOVE TO." He settled on the couch and pulled off a glove, then turned on the TV to something good for a positive stimulus.

He turned to Daemon. "YOU WERE REALLY BRAVE TOO, DAEMON. YOU'RE SUCH A GOOD ALPHA." Berry's soul was doing flip flops. "ALWAYS TAKING CARE OF US ALL AND RESPECTING US." He kissed Daemon. "THANK YOU FOR BEING YOU."

Daemon’s pupils turned into little hearts, and he gently kissed back. “you make me feel brave, both of you. thanks for being there. we all did really good. let’s relax, okay?”

They spent the rest of the evening relaxing and recovering from the attention.

* * *

Everyone took a few days off to settle down. The baby, Pucci (which was pronounced Puchi), was the star of everyone's attention. Stretch and Vex had received many presents, flowers, and congratulations cards. Of course, there were some get-well cards and gifts as well.

Vex posted a few pictures of Pucci online, so others could see the splendor that was their child and not have to disturb Stretch and the baby with visits just yet. The only exception was his family. They were all going over today, Saturday.

Berry looked at his laundry basket and saw he needed to do laundry tonight. He grabbed the last clean thing from the hanger and blushed. When he packed his bag he had been in a hurry and just grabbed clothes, not paying attention. He thought it was a longer night gown... He didn't often wear dresses.

He looked in the mirror at the bright blue sundress that came to his knees. The top had short sleeves that fluttered. He clipped his bandana in place, then came out of his room to see if the others were ready.

Daemon and Howl were both ready, and both looked surprised at the dress but not upset. "you look nice!" Daemon said with a smile, and Howl nodded in agreement.

Berry said with a blush, "thanks." He picked up the wrapped baby blanket he made with Howl's help.

"you're welcome." He ported them.

Sans and Red were already there. Red had out his phone and was taking pictures of baby Pucci, who was dressed in an orange onesie and giggling. He had Catpernicus in his lap. "who's my favorite nibling?" Red cooed. "who's a cute baby~? who has a kitty for a cousin? you do~!" Cat purred in his daddy's lap.

Sans got up so Berry could sit by Red and Pucci. He waved at everyone, "yo."

Berry waved back and giggled at the sight of Red. He came and sat next to Red. "YOU SURE LOOK LIKE A NATURAL PARENT," he teased and wiggled his fingers over Puchi. "HELLO, OUR MOST BELOVED NIBLING." The baby grabbed on to the wiggly digits and pulled them into their mouth, drooling on them.

Red turned his namesake. "no way. this is a prime uncle personality. i'll be the best uncle."

"ARE THE TWO REALLY ALL THAT DIFFERENT IN INSTINCT?" Howl asked dryly while Daemon giggled.

"yes! they're very different!"

"HELLO, BERRY. HOWL, DAEMON." Vex poked out of the kitchen. "I'M STILL COOKING. STRETCH SHOULD BE BACK ANY MINUTE, HE'S GRABBING PAPYRUS."

Berry clamped his hands over his teeth trying to hold in the laugh over Red's indignation.

"HELLO VEX," Berry managed.

Red huffed. "look here, i've already got a child. isn't that right, cat? aren't you daddy's baby?" Catpernicus mewed happily as he was pet and licked Red's hand.

"cutie!" Daemon came over. "i smell like dog, will be scared?"

"i don't think so."

Daemon tried to pet Cat, who purred and flumped like the fuzzy pushover he was. Red absently kept petting as he looked Berry over. He was still blushing a little. "i, uh... didn't know you wore dresses, berry. it looks good. uh. real cute."

Berry used his other hand to pet the cat, and said, "YOU’RE TEACHING RED TO BE A GREAT PARENT, CATPERNICUS. KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK." He blushed. "THANKS, I DON'T WEAR THEM TO MUCH, BUT THEY REALLY COMFY."

"pfft, cat dad is different!" He let Daemon and Berry pet Catpernicus happily, focused on Berry's attire. "yeah? why not? are you embarrassed?"

"A LITTLE. WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, I WOULD WEAR ANY ANYTHING I COULD FIND IN THE DUMP. DRESSES WERE SOME OF THE MOST COMPLETED OUTFITS I COULD FIND. IT WAS NICE, NOT TO BE MISMATCHED." Berry sighed. "I DON'T WEAR THEM OFTEN, AS THEY TEND NOT TO COVER MY SCARS WELL." He pulled his hand from the kitty and grabbed his right arm where an old healed over break was hidden. "BUT THIS ONE SHOWS ONLY MY LOWER ARMS. IT'S PRETTY AND A GIFT. PLUS I GOT THE FIGURE FOR IT," Berry joked trying to brighten the mood. Sans chuckled.

"aw, well, i getcha about scars," Red said, gesturing to the one across his right eye. "but don't let 'em hold you back, you know? if you like something, then... well, you know, you gave me a lecture." He grinned. "dresses are nice..."

"YEAH." Berry nodded. "BUT I DON'T NEED ANY MORE CLOTHES. THE MONEY NEEDS TO BE USED ON BETTER THINGS, LIKE PUCCI." He tickled their tummy. Pucci giggled and kicked their feet.

"I'm going to grab a drink. did any of you want anything?" Sans asked.

"NO THANK YOU," Berry replied.

"you're allowed to spend money on yourself," Red said sternly. "but i'm sure howl will spoil you anyway... ah, the mustard, sweetheart?"

"WATER IS FINE FOR ME," Howl called from where he'd sat by the couch.

"juice maybe, or water," Daemon asked.

Sans gave Red finger guns and ported to the kitchen.

Stretch popped in almost that same moment, Papyrus in tow. "hey everyone,” he said.

"HELLO BROTHER!" Berry said cheerfully.

"hey, paps!" Red waved at Papyrus, who beamed.

"HELLO EVERYONE! AND HELLO ESPECIALLY TO YOU, LITTLE ONE!" He cooed over the baby, rubbing their skull gently.

Berry got up so Papyrus could play with the baby. He hugged Stretch. "I'M SO HAPPY YOU’RE DOING WELL."

Sans popped back in, drinks encased in magic, and passed them out. "hey bro, and baby mama."

"HELLO, BROTHER!" Papyrus spared Sans a hug, then went right back to doting on the baby. Pucci was the ruler of their hearts.

Red took his drink and gave Sans a peck on the cheek. "thanks, sansy."

"hey ya," Stretch told Sans, then walked over to Berry and gave him a big hug, picking him up off the ground and giving a little spin, making the dress flare. "missed ya, bro. i love that dress on you. it looks too cute on ya."

Berry blushed. "THANKS, BRO."

Sans sat on the other side of Red and leaned on him and pet Catpernicus. Red watched Stretch and Berry, leaning against Sans. "bet it feels good to be mobile again, huh stretch?"

He carried Berry like a teddy bear and sat down with him in his lap, not ready to let his brother go. "by the angel, yes. i was so tired of walking everywhere. i don't know how anyone stands it."

Berry cuddled into his little brother's grip a little, a happy purr escaping him, as he played with Stretch's hand. His eyelights settled on the cute little bundle of bones kicking and laughing, the one white and one marbled eyelight looking at all the new faces.

Sans wiggled his fingers over the baby. "who is the cutest little thing? just look at you. such a sweet little thing."

"IT'S CALLED EXERCISE," Vex chided, though his tone was loving. He came out with a tray full of finger foods. 'Chicken' fingers, mozzarella sticks, stuffed mushrooms and teriyaki skewers.

"YES, WE CAN'T ALL CHEAT TIME AND SPACE FOR THE FUN OF IT," Papyrus agreed.

"i saw you walk down the side of a building once," Red pointed out.

"YES, BUT THAT'S STILL _WALKING,_ CHERRY, IT'S COMPLETELY DIFFERENT."

"wait, what?" Daemon looked at Papyrus with fascination while Howl busied himself examining the food like a paid critic on TV.

"HE'S RIGHT. HE STILL WALKED," Berry said, giggling.

"looks delicious, love." Stretch reached for a skewer and took a bite and held it in front of Berry. The captive monster huffed, looking a bit put out, but took a bite without complaint.

Sans got a mozzarella stick. "THAT’s BECAUSE YOU’RE AMAZING, PAPS."

"i mean... point i guess," Red said with a shrug as Daemon grinned.

"teach me!"

"TEACH YOU?” Pap asked. “I'M AFRAID WALL-WALKING IS NOT TEACHABLE, YOU MUST FEEL THE WALL-WALKING IN YOUR SOUL. AND YOUR FEET. THE FEET ARE VERY IMPORTANT."

"hmm..." Daemon jumped up, as if to go try and wall-walk, and Howl tugged him back down with the leash without batting an eye.

"PUPPY, I ADORE YOU. RUN HEADFIRST INTO A WALL LATER, PLEASE."

"aww..." He sat back down and everyone started to take food.

"vex, not only do you make a cute baby, you make great grub," Sans said as he took some more food.

"I KNOW I DO, BUT THANK YOU FOR POINTING IT OUT," Vex said grandly.

Stretch continued to take a bit of food and feed the rest to his captive Blueberry. Mozzarella sticks, two skewers, one stuffed mushroom, and two chicken fingers. Berry was beyond full. Stretch held a cup in front of him. "you’re eating so well today." He pet his head. "thirsty, bro?"

"YEAH." He took the water greedily. He was happy to make his brother happy, but he didn't want to eat so much while the others were still having their fill. And Stretch needed the food more than him. He couldn't see how much his brother was eating.

Then he saw Stretch reach for another mushroom, this one going straight to Berry, no bite taken from it. He didn't want to be rude to his brother. A quiet low whine escaped him and he looked at Howl and Daemon with pleading eyes, hoping they would save him from being stuffed more.

Howl was watching Stretch interact with Berry. He'd eaten quite a bit, so by this point, when Berry whined softly, Howl held up a hand. "BERRY, YOU'VE EATEN QUITE A BIT, I'M VERY PROUD OF YOU. WHY DON'T YOU COME OVER HERE AND CUDDLE DAEMON?"

"oh, yeah!" Daemon held out his arms. "i want a hug!"

Stretch pulled the mushroom away and popped it in his mouth and rubbed Berry’s head, then let him go sit with his mates.

Berry smiled and went to Daemon, hugging him. He smiled in thanks to Howl.

Sans chuckled. Catpernicus jumped into his lap, purring, and Sans fed the cute kitten a little piece of chicken. “so, what game should we play?”

Red gasped. "a baby!" He petted Catpernicus like he didn't see the baby every day of his life. "well we didn't get to play the drawing game. want to try that?"

Sans laughed at Red's antics.

Daemon snuggled up with Berry and kissed his cheek. "good job," he whispered.

"THE DRAWING GAME, YES, THAT SOUNDS VERY FUN! WE CAN GET THE BABYBONES TO JUDGE HOW GOOD OUR DRAWINGS ARE," Papyrus suggested.

Berry purred softly. "thank you.” he whispered back. He turned to look at Papyrus. "THAT SOUNDS GREAT."

"that sounds like a great idea." Stretch picked up Puuci, who giggled and cooed. "you are going to be great at picking pictures." He nuzzled them and kissed their skull.

"OH, YES, OF COURSE! MY CHILD WILL LEARN GOOD TASTE AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE," Vex agreed enthusiastically.

"VERY WELL, THIS SOUNDS ACCEPTABLE," Howl agreed. "DID YOU SAY YOU HAD CATEGORIES OR WHAT HAVE YOU, BERRY?"

"I HAVE A CUP OF MIXED THINGS." Berry smiled at Howl. "IF WE WANT CATEGORIES, WE NEED TO MAKE THEM UP OURSELVES."

"OH, YES, I SEE. WELL, LET'S COME UP WITH CATEGORY IDEAS, THEN?"

"food," Red suggested.

"ANIMALS," Berry said.

"famous places," Stretch chimed in.

"songs," Sans suggested.

"how do you draw songs?" Daemon asked, rubbing his chin.

"ya draw the titles. like somewhere over the rainbow, you draw a rainbow, maybe some arrows going over it." Sans smiled.

"OR PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, YOU COULD DRAW HIS MASK," Berry added.

"oh!" Daemon beamed. "that makes sense then, okay!"

"sounds fun, sure." Red nuzzled Sans. "you're so smart, sansy."

"VERY WELL, THEN WHAT CATEGORY DO WE DO FIRST?" Howl asked.

Berry raised his hand. "LET'S START WITH FOOD."

Pucci let out a coo and giggled. "i think pucci aggrees." Stretch said.

"OF COURSE THEY DO! THEY ARE ALREADY A BRILLIANT CONNOISSEUR JUST LIKE ME," Vex bragged. "THEY WILL ALWAYS HAVE A TASTE FOR THE FINER THINGS IN LIFE LIKE GOOD FOOD."

"you hear that baby? do you take after your papa?" Stretch tickled the small plump ecto-tummy. Pucci burped. Berry covered his mouth, trying to hold back laughter.

"welp, kid knows what foods are for," Sans chuckled.

"YOU'RE EXCUSED," Vex said, patting the baby's head. Red snickered.

"WELL IF WE'RE DOING FOOD. RED SHOULD GO FIRST, HE THOUGHT THAT ONE UP." Berry offered, "I'LL GO GET SOME PAPER AND A PENS." He gave Daemon a quick kiss and went to get the supplies.

"oh, me?" Red shrugged. "sure, alright. do i have to wear a blindfold?"

"yeah, we can't have ya peeking,” Sans said with a laugh.

"alright, alright."

"I CAN OBLIGE WITH THAT." Vex offered the same darn scarf he'd put on Stretch last time. "THIS TIME, IT'S SAFE, SO."

"yeah." He tied it on over his eyes.

Berry came back out and placed the pen in Red's hand and the paper on his lap. "YOU THINK UP WHAT YOU WANT TO DRAW AND WE’LL GUESS IT."

Catpernicus let out a meow and licked his leg.

"i got him." sans picked him up and put the fuzzy kitty in his lap and scratched his head. Cat purred.

"sure, i got it." He started to draw, sticking out his tongue a little. The result after a few minutes wasn't... _horrible,_ all things considered. Not good. Not neat. But it might be okay if you squint. Vaguely roundish, a bit square-ish on the bottom, a spirally mess on the top. Dots peppered haphazardly.

"CUPCAKE?" Berry asked

"bread loaf?" Sans guessed.

"valentine's dessert," Stretch said.

Pucci cooed.

"berry got it in one." Red half pouted, but he wasn't actually upset. He pulled off the blindfold to look. "guys, i think this is better than when i _do_ look," he joked.

Sans laughed. "looks like a picasso."

Berry snickered. "I'LL GO NEXT." He got into position and waited to be blindfolded.

"aww, thanks sansy. i'll be famous before you know it." He handed over the blindfold. Daemon put it on Berry's face gently.

Berry put the pen on the paper. He drew a long thin oval and two round balls. He stuck out his tongue. a look of concentration on his face. He colored some black scribbles over it and tried to make it look drippy. Then on the very bottom he put a 'u' shape under it.

They all thought carefully.

"hot dog?" Red suggested.

"CAN'T BE. SPAGHETTI?" Papyrus offered.

"oh, oh, if the bottom is a hand, maybe it's a meatball sub?" Daemon said.

"BANANA SPLIT," Howl said confidently.

"HOWL GOT IT,” Berry said with a big smile as he took off the blindfold.

Howl preened, examining his gloved hands as if inspecting beautiful nails. "NATURALLY, I AM VERY CLEVER."

"you sure are, master!" Daemon said, beaming. "can i go next?"

"sure," Stretch said.

Berry handed his tall datemate the pen. Then he made a motion for him to kneel down. He tied the scarf in place and gave a kiss to the crown of Daemon's skull. Then he went to go sit next to his handsome datemate. He gave Howl a smile. "YOU ARE SO VERY CLEVER, MY ANGEL." Berry's fingers curled with want to hold Howl's hand. Instead, he gripped the soft bandana.

“I KNOW, BUT THANK YOU.”

Daemon let Berry put the scarf in place, then took the pen and paper with a grin. "alright, here goes." He started to draw as Howl preened at Berry's praise. He a vaguely oval shape, a bit flat on one side. Near the back area at the bottom, another oval with two lines sticking out. Then a triangle closer to the front.

"A CREPE?" Berry guessed.

"ice cream with pocky?" Sans guessed

"Pancakes?" Stretch asked.

Daemon shook his head and blindly tried to add more detail to the triangles and back oval. Looked like the lines made the end of a bone.

"oh, ahh, it's a meat for sure..." Red said.

"Hmmm..." Stretch thought.

"chicken?" Sans asked.

"OH I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY THAT." Berry huffed and giggled.

Daemon beamed, pulling off the blindfold. "you got it, sans! it's a whole chicken~ tasty!"

"gross, real meat," Red said with a snort.

"pfft, crunch. love me real meat."

Sans had a thoughtful look on his face and asked, "does an affinity for meat come with being part dragon?"

Daemon's smile faded a little, and he rubbed the back of his neck with a grimace. "kinda, yeah..."

"LESS THE HERITAGE, MORE WHAT WAS DONE TO HIM," Howl said somberly. "I HAVE NO SUCH CRAVING."

"interesting." Sans’ scientist mind pondered. "did you both inherit the same transformation ability?"

"NO," Howl said curtly. Daemon folded the scarf carefully.

"i might as well tell you everything, you're probably really curious..."

"ONLY IF YOU ARE OKAY WITH SHARING!" Papyrus assured. "WE DO NOT WANT TO PRESSURE YOU!"

"no, it's okay. you want me to start from the beginning?"

Sans nodded.

"just a bit curious," Stretch said as he rocked Pucci.

Berry smiled up at Daemon, patting the seat next to him. "YOU WANT TO SIT WITH ME PUPPY?"

Daemon sat down next to Berry and curled around him, using the snuggles as a way to keep himself grounded. He took a deep breath, petting Berry absently.

"well... um, when i was little... dad trained me constantly. that's the first thing i remember, is training and fighting. he made me fight lots of people, and eventually, kill them too. i didn't want to... but also i did? i really, really wanted to, because i was really, really angry and they were the cause. that's what i thought, anyway... i first transformed, umm... maybe when i was... eight or nine? he was really proud and kept encouraging me to do it more, to do it without prompting. i didn't, uhh... see people. except him and the people he had me fight. i was alone in a small room when he wasn't training me, and it was really lonely, so, i was happy to be praised. i got things when i did good. tasty food and nice clothes and sometimes toys. so i tried my best to learn how to transform by my own wishes instead of just randomly. i got really good at it eventually, and as my LV went up slowly, the angry voice got more... haughty. smug. i started to think it wasn't just they made me angry, they _should_ die... they were weak and i was strong, dad said i was the strongest. and being the strongest was _good."_

Howl looked away as Daemon told the story, clenching his hands hard on his arms, glaring at the wall but trembling a little.

Berry held Daemon close as he told his story. It was so heartbreakingly sad. "OH, PUPPY." He kissed Daemon's skull. "I'M SO SORRY YOU WENT THROUGH THAT." He squeezed him gently. "YOU'RE NOT ALONE ANY MORE. WE’RE ALL HERE FOR YOU. "

Catpernicus jumped up to purr and nuzzle in Daemon and Berry.

Stretch was in shock. "why would anyone do that to a child...?" he mumbled mostly to himself, holding Pucci close.

Sans gripped onto Red’s hand as Daemon told his story. "we're here for you if you ever want to talk, daemon." He looked over at Howl, who was looking away. He couldn't imagine what Howl's childhood must have been like. "and you too, howl."

Daemon smiled a little at Berry, even though it was a bit sad. "i know. i'm really glad i have you guys now." He pet Catpernicus a little too.

"that's just fucked up," Red said, uneasily touching the wrist of the hand he always kept tucked away in his pocket. But then he squeezed Sans's hand gently.

"YES, BUT IT'S OVER NOW! AND THIS PERSON HAS BEEN PROSECUTED?" Papyrus asked.

Howl twitched as he was addressed. "YES," he said.

"mhm... that's not the end of it. there's more, if you still wanna hear?" Daemon asked.

"IF YOU WANT TO SHARE, WE ARE HERE TO LISTEN." Berry nuzzled into him.

"okay... so... um... i knew the angry, smug voice wasn't right. shouldn't be right. those people were scared when i attacked them, and that didn't feel so good. i thought, maybe if it feels good to have dad praise me, i should be nice to them too, and maybe they'd be nice back? dad didn't like that. the voice got worse, but... i started really hating it. and then... when i was fifteen... i met howl."

He glanced over at his brother, who was pulling out knitting to focus on it instead of the distressing conversation.

"i guess it's weird to you guys, but he's younger than me by a few years. and, um, i didn't even know i had a brother until i met him by accident. i'd broken out of my room to wander around, and there he was in one of the halls... i was so happy to find out i had a brother! i wanted to get to know him. that's when i started to realize how... _bad_ our dad was. a really, really bad person. i tried to stop doing what he said. i didn't want praise from someone so horrible. but when i didn't listen to him, the voice got worse and worse until i had to listen... i figured it out when he yelled at me and it sounded really similar... it was him. that voice in me. he put his voice in my head..."

He looked down, touching his chest.

"i dunno how, but, he... put a part of his soul in mine? when i was a baby, i think. or even when i wasn't yet born. i dunno the specifics. but... he put part of himself there. to control me. that's the voice, always telling me to be mad, to fight, that everyone is weak and they should be destroyed. it was so hard to fight that voice... but master made it easier, because i knew howl cared about me! and wanted me to do the _right_ thing. so... i decided to listen to him instead. and when he uses a strong, loud voice, it drowns out the bad one. most of the time, anyway... um, i've slipped up several times since we killed dad and left... but, it's been so long since last time. i was doing really well..."

Daemon hung his head a little as he said that, shoulders slumping.

"i... i didn't want you guys to see that part of me... i was hoping it would never come out again..."

Sans couldn't help but imagine Papyrus' beautiful faith in others getting crushed, and it made the Judge in him want to go after their father. "don't worry about it, daemon." he told him.

"hey, you got it back under control, and berry didn't get delivered to the queen. don't beat yourself up so much," Stretch said and leaned against Vex to help him feel the safety of his presence. To be reassured nothing like this could ever happen to their baby.

Catpernicus saw Howl's yarn and watched it wiggle and unravel the ball. He crouched down low and put his butt up in the air, getting ready to pounce move yarn.

Howl kept himself preoccupied, glancing at Catpernicus. "DON'T YOU DARE," he warned the kitty.

Catpernicus meowed at Howl and came up to his side and rubbed against him. And bat at the wiggling yarn.

Berry sat in shock a bit as Daemon told the rest of the story. It hit him, how much it was like what Red told him. A piece of a bad man’s soul was stuck in them. The horrible voice that ate away at his mind was his. Was that what Gaster was trying to do to him? Trying to make him his puppet? He nuzzled into his tall datemate, a cold shiver rippling through him. Daemon’s lovely warmth was there though, not letting his mind fall into despair that the voice was looking to prey upon.

"i know, it's just, i thought since we made it to the surface, maybe that part of me was gone forever. everything's better..."

"but shit ain't like that," Red said, squeezing Sans's hand. "because this kinda stuff doesn't go away easy, or just because we're free. it's still there, it's just... we can deal with it better, yeah? cause we got each other."

"YES, MY BROTHER IS RIGHT." Vex wrapped an arm around Stretch, kissing his skull gently. "OUR FAMILY IS BIG, AND THAT DOESN'T FIX EVERYTHING, BUT IT HELPS."

Stretch relaxed in Vex hold, and Pucci cooed. Daemon wiped at his face a little and smiled.

"okay... i'm glad i have such a big family! it's way different than when i was growing up. way nicer."

"THAT'S RIGHT, WE’RE ALL BE HERE FOR EACH OTHER NOW. WE'RE NOT ALONE." Berry said not only for Daemon to hear, but to remind himself. He cuddled into his datemate. "WAS GASTER YOUR FATHER?" Daemon pet him again.

"his name was... serpens. but he looked a lot like gaster, from what i saw of him at the sanitarium. they're really similar."

"that's right," Sans said. He got closer to Red.

"GUYS...." Daemon was so brave to tell them all, gathering his courage. Berry wanted to try and be as strong as his datemate. "RED FINISHED ANALYZING THE FILE YOU FOUND ON ME. DR. GASTER, HE..." He took a deep breath of Daemon and squeezed his bandana, feeling Howl. He looked up at his angel. "I’VE BEEN HEARING A VOICE FOR A LONG TIME. SINCE A BIT AFTER HE TOOK ME FOR HIS SPECIAL PROJECT." He took a few more breaths. "HE INTEGRATED HIS MAGIC INTO ME A PIECE OF HIS SOUL? RED COULDN'T FIGURE OUT WHY THOUGH. HE STILL ALIVE..." He looked to Daemon, "MAYBE HE CAN TELL US HOW TO GET IT OUT? OR STOP THE VOICES?"

Howl tsked softly, but petted the cat with one soft gloved hand, gently rubbing at his head. Cat purred loudly, going squinty-eyed. As Berry spoke again, he looked up from what he was doing. He was being brave, and Howl was so proud of that. He offered a rare smile when Berry looked over at him.

Daemon nuzzled Berry again, still petting gently. "that's terrible..."

"the data doesn't show why, but i have a few ideas," Red said grimly. "he was pushing his own magic in with a bunch of chemicals to still try and control it, so my guess is he wanted to make you into... a servant, or something. to obey all his orders and do things he can't do out in the open, attack people or get things he needs. the fact that the voice always tells you to learn your place and just do what you're told makes me think he wanted you to just do everything he said without question."

"THAT IS VERY TROUBLING," Howl said, returning to his knitting. "WE ARE COMBATING THAT VOICE TOO, BUT I THINK IT IS IMPERATIVE WE STAY _AWAY_ FROM HIM. THERE IS NO REASON FOR HIM TO TELL US HOW TO GET IT OUT OR STOP IT. HE STILL WANTS YOU AS HIS LITTLE EXPERIMENT. WE NEED TO KEEP HIM AWAY FROM YOU AT ALL COSTS."

Berry's soul fluttered when Howl gave him that smile. He was a little bit jealous of Catpernicus. The lucky little kitty got to feel Howl’s wonderful touch.

"howl is right, berry," Stretch said. "the doctor is a piece of work. he has his own agendas. you need to stay away from him."

Berry didn't want to think about what the doctor wanted to do to him, or why. Yet, if they could get information to help not only him, but Daemon, it was something they should try. He nuzzled into the warm puppy.

"mhm. i'm okay. and i want you safe." Daemon nuzzled back.

Berry sighed happily into Daemon, giving up on the idea for now.

"well... who wants nicer news?" Red asked, perking up.

Pucci plopped his fist into his mouth as his marbled and white eye looked at his mom and dad. Stretch laughed softly and pull the hand free. "i would love to hear some."

"I WOULD TOO," Berry added.

Capternicus walked up on Howl and laid right between the knitting and the skeleton purring happily, happy clawing the work.

Howl sighed and put away the knitting lest Cat tear a hole or mess up a stitch. "YES, LET'S HEAR IT."

"alright. so, uh-" Red nervously put a hand in his pocket.

"WAIT!" Papyrus scrambled to get his phone and pulled up his camera app, grinning wide and pointing it at Red. "OKAY, GO AHEAD."

Red blushed, pulling his hand back out to smack his face. "oh my god, paps, no pictures."

"PLEASE?"

"okay, okay! fine." He huffed, but stuck his hand back in his pocket and pulled out a small jewelry box, black velvet. He slid off the couch to kneel in front of Sans, embarrassed and still flushed, but soft around the eyelights.

"ya didn't think i wouldn't do it proper, right?"

He opened the box to show off a gorgeous ring, moonstone, bright blue, with a sterling silver band.

"sans, will you marry me?" He'd already said yes before. Red already knew the answer. But his soul was beating hard anyway, thudding against his ribs.

Sans soul was fluttering. He knew that they were going to tell the others today, not that his lover was going to this. He _knew_ how much Red was scared of what that symbolized. The surprised skeleton really didn't think Red was going to go through with a ring. His face was bright blue.

He looked at the ring. A moonstone. 'red always brings in my love for space and stars,' Sans told himself. "how are you always so stellar?" He held out his hand for Red, "yes, of course." he chuckled. "i knew lunar or later, i would moonipulate my way into your soul." He winked at Red and pulled out his own box. "my turn."

Red flushed, but laughed at the puns. "i sure didn't planet, but it wasn't all of a saturn, either. you're definitely the flight of my life." He put the ring on Sans's finger while Papyrus pretended he wasn't crying as he took pictures. Howl and Daemon watched with interest, and Vex was beaming, holding Stretch closer.

At the sight of Sans's ring box, Red actually looked surprised. "you, you got me one too...?" He plopped back on the couch to give Sans room.

Berry's soul almost shined with happiness for them. He rested his head on Daemon as he watched.

Sans got on a knee and held the well-worn box up for Red. It had spots where you couldn’t see the velvet. "red, i've been wanting to ask you for a long time. i wanted to make sure you would say yes before it did." He opened the box and inside was a gold ring. crested in it were two fire red rubies. "rubies are said to restore vital life force and courage. they are the color of your magic. red, as long as you’re with me, ya make me a better monster. please marry me?"

Red was blown away by the gorgeous ring, the vivid red color. And the words were even more sweet. He teared up, holding out his hand for the ring. "y-yeah, sansy, of course. you're so fucking perfect. i love it. i, i love you." He wiped uselessly at his sockets with his other wrist.

Sans put the ring on Reds hand and pulled him up into a kiss.

Stretch was crying now, "congratulations, you two knuckleheads. about time." Pucci made some whining sounds and Stretch laid them on his chest. "it's okay baby, they’re happy tears."

Berry was on the verge of tears as well. He nuzzled Daemon. "CONGRATULATIONS. I'M OVERJOYED YOU TWO FINALLY DID IT."

Catpernicus got down from Howl and rubbed at Red's and Sans's legs, purring.

Red threw his arms around Sans to kiss him deeply. Papyrus was full of tears as he took more pictures. "I'M SO GLAD! THE WEDDING IS GOING TO BE FANTASTIC!"

"YES, DEFINITELY, WE'LL COLLABORATE TO MAKE IT AMAZING," Vex agreed. He didn't tear up, but he looked a bit emotional himself.

"CONGRATULATIONS. THOSE RINGS LOOK APPROPRIATELY EXPENSIVE," Howl said approvingly, making Daemon snort a little.

"and pretty! he means pretty."

"THAT'S WHAT I SAID, EXPENSIVE."

Berry giggled at Howl and Daemon. "WE SHOULD HAVE A TOAST TO THE HAPPY COUPLE." Berry got up. "DID WE WANT TO USE THE WINE?"

"OH, AN EXCELLENT IDEA. I BROUGHT SOME." Howl pulled out a bottle from his inventory. Vex gently pulled away from Stretch to get everyone a glass. Berry went to help him.

Red pulled back from the kiss to nuzzle gently, still crying a little. He wiped at his face again with a smile. "sorry i took so long, sansy."

Stretch repositioned Pucci, who was currently absorbing some magic. "what kind is it, howl?"

"CABERNET SAUVIGNON. A LITTLE FRUITY, I FIGURED IT WOULD BE APPEALING TO THE MOST PEOPLE." He held it out to be examined.

Stretch took it and read.the bottle. "i’ll have to take your word for it. i’ve never had it." The.passed it back.

Sans nuzzled Red's neck and pulled his date.mate into his lap, purring.

"WELL, YOU WILL TRY IT TODAY. DO NOT WORRY, YOU NEED NOT IMPRESS ME WITH VAST WINE KNOWLEDGE. SO LONG AS YOU DON'T DUMP HONEY IN IT." He took it back and popped the cork as Vex and Berry came back with glasses.

Red purred back, nuzzling his fiance, and scooped Catpernicus into his lap to be part of the cuddle pile.

Berry set down the glasses near Howl. "THANK YOU, MY ANGEL."

"FOR WHAT, KITTEN?" He started to pour everyone some of the wine.

"FOR SHARING." He said with a smile. He wanted to hug and kiss Howl. He waited until Howl was done pouring all the drinks and asked, "MAY I HOLD YOU HAND?"

"OH, OF COURSE, IT IS NO TROUBLE." He corked the wine again and put it away. After a moment's hesitation, he pulled off his glove and held out his hand for Berry to take. Vex handed out a glass to everyone.

Berry’s eyelights were stars and he purred quietly, happily. He wasn't sure if Howl would be willing to with others around. He reached for Daemon with his other hand. He wanted them to be close.

Stretch heard the purring, thinking at first it was the new couple. Then he realized it was from the other side of the room. He saw Berry's eyelights and sighed happily, holding his baby in one arm and the cup in his other hand. He gave a little head butt to Vex and nuzzled his head affectionately.

Daemon snuggled him, but let a hand free for each of them for a toast. Once everyone had one, Vex lifted his glass.

"TO OUR VERY CUTE PUCCI, AND TO THOSE TWO BONEHEADS FINALLY GETTING ENGAGED."

Berry snickered and said, "CHEERS."

"cheers," Stretch agreed, bouncing Pucci and cleaning his glass.

Sans blushed a bit. "cheers," he said and nuzzled Red.

"CHEERS!" Papyrus tinked glasses with everyone. Daemon and Howl did the same, and everyone took a drink. Howl made a pleased noise at the taste. Red privately thought bourbon was better, but didn't say so. He was very happy. It was a nice way to end the evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary:  
> The Fellswaps and Berry prepare for their press conference. Berry is nervous, but speaks, Howl speaks and takes questions, and when a question is directed at Daemon, he also speaks. Howl completes questions, all of them combatting the queen's claims of Berry bewitching them, appealing to the audience's emotions, talking about how normal they are. They go home to relax. That Saturday, they go to Stretch and Vex's house for family game night. Berry wears a dress, because it is his last article of clean clothing. Red and Sans have brought Catpernicus, and everyone is cooing over Pucci. Red and Berry discuss dresses and babies. Stretch brings Papyrus and there is talk of shortcutting and wall-walking. They eat, and Stretch keeps feeding Berry until Howl rescues him. They play the blindfold drawing game, until Sans asks Daemon about if dragons must eat meat. Daemon then speaks of how his father raised him to fight and gain LV and get strong, and that the voice, Serpens, is his father's directly, a piece of his soul implanted into Daemon. Howl is very uncomfortable and knits, dealing with Cat's playing with his yarn. Berry reveals to everyone the cause of his own voice, Gaster's magic added into him. He suggests they talk to Gaster to see what they can do about Daemon's voice, but everyone refuses. Red, in order to boost the mood, more publicly proposes to Sans, with a ring. Sans proposes in turn with his own ring, and everyone is very emotional and happy. They have a toast with some wine.


	20. Pick a Star on the Dark Horizon and Follow the Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the days are actually going alright for a while!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I hope you all having a great day! Please leave a kudos and a comment letting us know what you think and what you hope will happen. We would love to hear from you! <3
> 
> If you want to know what the glue story is read:[Sticky Sexcapades](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29255655)

Berry and Daemon had just finished cleaning the kitchen. Berry was doing a lot of cleaning today. He wanted to keep his mind off the test that Red was going to do today. Logically, he knew it wouldn't be like it was in the Sanitarium. Red was his brother-in-law and cared for him. 

He looked at the clock. It was almost time to leave. Howl clipped the leash onto Daemon's neck, and Daemon took Berry's hand.

"don't worry, we'll be there the whole time,” Daemon assured.

"YES, OF COURSE. WE WOULD NOT LEAVE YOU. AND RED IS TRUSTWORTHY, EVEN IF HE'S AN IDIOT SOMETIMES. DON'T TELL HIM, I SAID THAT,” Howl agreed.

Daemon and Berry giggled. Berry calmed a bit at his datemates’ reassurance. "I WON'T."

"GOOD. LET'S GO."

Daemon ported them to Red and Sans's place, outside of course. Howl knocked on the door. After a moment, Red opened it.

"you know, you could just port inside,” he said.

"SOME OF US HAVE MANNERS, RED,” Howl responded.

"bah, manners. manners are for squares."

"WE LOOK EXTREMELY SIMILAR."

"you're a square on the inside." Red winked at Berry.

Berry shook his head and smiled. "YOU'RE SILLY, RED. WE ARE MAGIC ON THE INSIDE," he joked back.

"heh, you're so right, berry. silly is my middle name." He ushered them in.

The small monster was feeling a lot less anxious as he went inside. "HELLO SANS."

Sans had been snoozing on the couch, and now got up. "heya everyone."

“hiya sans!” Daemon waved at him cheerfully.

Berry couldn’t help but wonder, "RED WHAT IS YOUR FULL NAME?"

"oh, ah, actually, my and vex's last name is russel," he said as he led the way up to his office, which he'd converted into a lab and workshop. He had a few projects lying around, plenty of parts, and space posters galore. Howl looked around absently.

"YOU DO REALIZE THAT THE NAME 'RUSSEL' MEANS 'RED-HAIRED,' RIGHT?" Howl asked.

"yeah. it's a long story."

Berry tried to not look at the lab stuff. Sans walked in after them and saw Berry tremble. Maybe a story would help him keep his mind off what was going to happen. "ya got plenty of time to tell them while ya do this. it'll help keep berry's mind off it, or maybe the glue story?"

"the glue story...?" Daemon asked, and Red's face turned his namesake.

"shut up, sansy, nobody needs to hear the glue story!" He huffed. "alright, berry, you just sit and relax. it would help if you took your shirt off, or at least lifted it up. but, yeah, i can tell the story of our dumb names while i work."

"THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD IDEA," Howl agreed, leaning against the wall.

Sans snickered and zipped his lips and threw away the key.

Berry was pretty sure everyone in here knew about the hole in his ribs, but maybe Sans didn't. "ARE YOU OKAY IF I TAKE OFF MY SHIRT, SANS? I HAVE MISSING BONES."

Sans had read about it in Berry's file, so he nodded. "it's fine, kiddo."

Berry pulled off his T-shirt. The top half of his third and fourth ribs had been cleanly sawed off, leaving a perfect opening for Red to use to get samples.

"alright,” Red said, “so it all started as early as i can remember, falling into the innkeeper bun's inn cold and a lil' kid. no idea what my name was or what vex's name was, and agatha - that's the innkeeper bun - took us in with her three buns and let us sleep on her couch and fed us and shit. and we didn't have names, so she let us pick our own. and of course we were little kids and didn't know shit, so i went with red. because, you know, my magic."

He pulled out a few syringes and vials from a drawer and came over, pulling up Berry's arm.

"vex chose his name because it sounded cool, i guess, and he saw the word 'vexed' in a book so he just - you know. and we didn't pick last names. so see, when we went to get a house in snowdin, not long out of stripes by then, 'course the guardsman was like 'what's your name for the deed,' and i said 'yeah it's red.' and he was a dog so he didn't give a fuck so he wrote that right down. now flash forward to reaching the surface, right, here's where it all happened."

As he spoke, he took a sample from Berry's wrist, filling one of the two vials.

The story kept Berry's mind occupied, distracting from the needles. It was so rare to hear anyone's stories. It was sad that they were lost kids not knowing their family, but at least they found someone nice to watch over them.

"so when we all got up here, the humans wanted to issue us all id's, right? so there we were, in line for that. and it gets to be my turn, vex is right behind me, and the human at the desk is probably all scared out about skeletons, or maybe she was dead inside, because she just stared up at me and asked for my name. so i told her, 'it's red.' and she was like 'ok what's your first name?' and that was when i got confused. i was like 'what do you mean, what's my first name? my name is red.' then she kinda squinted at me, half disbelieving and half not giving a shit, right?"

He replaced the needle and vial, setting the other one down, and carefully reached for Berry's chest for the second sample.

"and she said 'ok so what's your last name?' and i said 'lady, i just told you my name is red, that's it. i have no idea what you're asking me.' and she gave me this stare and explained that humans have a first name, unique to them, and a last name that's their family's name. the kids get it from their parents, you get married and you might change it to your spouse's, all that shit. now vex was listening too, so i turned back to him like 'can you believe this shit?' and he got all thoughtful like 'it makes sense, some books and music have two names for the human that made it.' so i turned back around and was like 'ok, can you give me an example of a last name?' and she just said 'oh my god' and pulled out her phone and googled last names and held out a list to us."

He took the second sample as he spoke, using an exaggerated girl voice for the government worker in the story.

Berry kept as still as he could for the sample, a few giggles escaping here and there. "SO YOU FOUND RUSSEL ON HER PHONE?" he asked.

"yup, exactly. i pointed to one at random without even looking and said 'that one.' because i didn't give a shit, you know. so she looked at the one i pointed to and said 'sir, this says right here it means red-haired or red-skinned. you don't have hair or skin.' and i initially didn't care, but i was suddenly very into this last name. so i said 'but my first name is red, so now i can be red the red-haired skeleton, fuck you.' and she blinked a few times like she was rebooting, then looked behind me to vex with this pleading, pained look. and vex, bless his fucking soul, shrugged and said, 'I DON'T GIVE A FUCK EITHER.'"

Red mimicked his brother's voice pretty well, somehow.

"so she just sighed really obnoxiously and typed it in and gave us our id's and said 'i don't get paid enough for this shit.' and i said 'nobody is paid enough to deal with me, lady,' and gave her a salute and went on my merry fucking way, and here i am."

He put both samples in a centrifuge.

"now, the story of me fighting about my first name to get into grad school is a different story entirely. and ask vex what the sign outside his office door at his studio says."

Once the needles were out of him, Berry broke into a fit of giggles. "OH, RED, THAT IS JUST..." He was gasping for breath. "YOUR NEW MIDDLE NAME IS NOW SILLY FOR SURE. RED SILLY RUSSEL."

Sans was smiling ear to ear. It was a great story, and it was great seeing Berry happy despite everything that had happened this week. He said, "ya heard the kiddo. when you're in trouble, now i can call ya red silly russell."

Red grinned wide, also really pleased that he'd gotten Berry to laugh so much. "heh, you know, that's fair."

Daemon also looked very amused, kneeling by Howl and covering his mouth with one hand to stifle himself. "that sounds so fun, though! i wish i could've picked my name."

"AS TERRIBLE AS OUR FAMILY WAS, I HAVE TO ADMIT, 'COATL' IS A DECENT LAST NAME." Howl examined his phalanges like they were nails. "IT SOUNDS GOOD, EVEN IF IT DOES MEAN 'SERPENT.'"

"sure, but i'm named after a beastly, evil thing."

"IT IS A MISNOMER, AND THOSE ARE THE BEST NAMES. DAEMON, YOU ARE THE OPPOSITE OF A DEMON. YOU ARE VERY PRECIOUS AND WONDERFUL, AND ANYONE WHO WOULD JUDGE YOU FOR YOUR NAME IS NOT WORTHY OF OUR ATTENTION OR RESPECT."

Daemon brightened a little at that.

Berry calmed down. "YEP, HOWL'S RIGHT, YOU BOTH HAVE VERY GOOD NAMES," he said, smiling and trying to reassure his datemate. "I'M SURE YOU KNOW I WAS NAMED AFTER FOOD. I WAS TOLD WHEN I WAS LITTLE MY MAGIC WOULD LIGHT UP MY FACE WHEN I WAS REALLY HAPPY OR UPSET. DAD SAID I LOOKED LIKE A BLUEBERRY AND THAT WAS THAT. DAD ALSO SAID ASTER WAS MOM'S FAVORITE FLOWERS, AND BECAUSE WE WERE HER FAVORITE PEOPLE HE GAVE US IT FOR A LAST NAME."

Daemon smiled more. "aw, that's such a cute story! you do look like a blueberry~ especially when you blush and your cheeks get all blue~ i love it."

"HE IS VERY CUTE," Howl agreed, sounding smug, like this was a personal victory on his account that he had a cute datemate.

“WELL.” Berry blushed as they talked. “I'M GLAD YOU LIKE IT."

"WE VERY MUCH DO."

"yeah, you're our blueberry." Daemon came over and helped Berry get his shirt back on, then hugged him.

Red hummed absently, pouring out some samples into petri dishes to examine under a microscope. He'd shifted from funny story mode to serious scientist mode.

Sans came over and labeled the samples for Red. "did y'all want anything to drink or something? we can wait in the living room while red works."

"DO YOU HAVE WINE?" Howl asked, though he was pretty sure they wouldn't.

"barbecue sauce?"

"MILK?" Berry asked.

"I think we have some from v-day. kinda forgot about it, but ya can have some. I know we got the others. I'll meet ya in the living room." He ported out.

"OH, ALRIGHT." Pleased, Howl headed downstairs. Daemon followed along, holding Berry's hand happily. Red barely noticed they left, muttering to himself as he wrote notes and squinted into his microscope.

It took Sans a few minutes to gather up all the orders. He levitated the drinks out and brought a bag of chips and paper towels. "it shouldn't take too long, we can just chill." He sent the drinks over to them.

Both Fellswap brothers took their respective drinks with thanks.

"what about your last name, sans?" Daemon asked curiously.

"comic sans serif, not very original i know. just a traditional font name."

Daemon giggled a little. "but very fitting."

"THE REAL QUESTION IS WHO IS TAKING WHOM'S NAME?"

Sans blushed at that. "that is a good question. russell would be funny to use."

"SANS RUSSELL. IT SOUNDS ALRIGHT," Howl said approvingly.

"are both papyrus and vex gonna be best men?" Daemon wondered.

"it works. it would be me without red hair." He laughed. "ya of course. the other question is who will wear a dress? i think red would look adorable in one. berry, you should go out shopping and happen upon a dress shop and have him try them on. send me pictures too." He winked.

Berry snickered. "IF RED WANTS TO, SURE."

"i saw him eyeing your dress yesterday," Daemon said slyly. "i bet you could convince him."

"HE DID LIKE IT." He thought it over. "I'LL BRING IT UP."

"cool! take pictures if you two do go shopping~" Daemon said.

"BUT DON'T SHOW SANS. TRADITION DICTATES HE NOT SEE THE DRESS UNTIL THE MOMENT OF,” Howl cautioned.

Berry nodded, agreeing with Howl.

"aah fine,” Sans said. “if he agrees to the dress, save all the dress pictures to show me after. If he’s not going to wear it i, get ta see them, okay?

"THAT IS ACCEPTABLE."

Sans sighed, "i'm a patient monster." He winked.

"I'M SURE YOU HAD TO BE, TO WAIT SO LONG FOR A PROPOSAL."

"heehee, yeah, he took a while."

"what ya gonna do?" Sans said. "his middle name is silly after all."

"heh, he'll never live that down, huh?"

"IT IS CHARMING, IN ITS OWN WAY. YOU MAKE A GOOD PAIR."

"nope." Sans popped th, 'p' and chuckled. "thanks." He blushed. "So do you three."

"NATURALLY. BUT I APPRECIATE YOU STATING THE OBVIOUS."

"thank you."

* * *

It was only a few more minutes before Red came down with the two vials in hand, looking mildly troubled.

"well, i got a good look at your magic, berry. it's... not good."

Berry looked at red expectedly as he entered and his smile fell at Red's words. He should have known better than to hope. "WHAT DID YOU FIND?" he asked softly.

"well, two things." He held up one vial, quite purply in the right light. "this is the one from your chest. the influence of gaster's magic is strong, it overrides yours. my guess is he isn't too keen on healing, especially with the intentions he had for you. so my guess is that's part of it. i may be able to filter it out with machinery, but it would take several sessions to do it fully. upshot is, it might seriously hinder that voice. i just don't know if i can get it all out at this point... it may only be management."

That... that wasn't as bad as he thought. His hand went up to his chest as he remembered the tubing and machines that the doctor had used. Then his hand went to his eye. "WHAT TYPE OF MACHINES?" His voice was shaking "WILL IT HAVE TO GO IN MY SOCKET AGAIN?"

"what?" Red's own eyelights went out. "y-your socket? fuck, no, of course not! an, an i/o will do fine. geez." He looked a bit shaky.

Berry took a deep breath. "OKAY. OKAY. THATS NOT SO BAD THAN."

"yeah. geez..." His hand drifted up to his right socket, then he shook it off. "uh, uh anyway, the other thing." He held out the second vial. "this is the one from your wrist, and the concentration of energy is weaker. there's some debris mixed in, and some dilution. now you mentioned you've... broken some bones. have they been broken a lot?"

"YES, IT'S ONE OF THE COMMON WAYS I WAS PUNISHED."

"right." He tried not to wince. "anyway, my guess is you'd have trouble even if you didn't have his magic, because it seems like the repeated breaks have damaged your mana lines a bit. the good news is that's a bit easier to deal with. massage and acupressure should help that."

He smiled. "THAT'S GREAT NEWS. THANK YOU SO MUCH, BROTHER." He got up to hug Red.

"aw, you're welcome." He hugged back, nice and tight.

"I WILL SCHEDULE YOU AN APPOINTMENT," Howl said. Therapy, hypnotherapy, cooking class and acupressure was a lot of activity, and he himself also had a psychiatrist to go to, but hopefully all this wouldn't be too much for Berry.

"THANK YOU, MY ANGEL." He was excited at the idea of maybe getting his magic back and the voice hopefully losing some power.

Sans smiled happily, thinking Ted was so cool.

"YOU'RE WELCOME. WE SHOULD GET HOME, BUT I'M SURE WE'LL SEE YOU AGAIN SOON."

"especially red!' Daemon said cheerfully. "for berry, i mean. when you go shopping~"

"shopping?" Red repeated.

Berry nodded, "YES. LET'S GO SHOPPING SOON."

Sans chuckled.

"wha- what are we going shopping for?"

Daemon giggled. "you'll see."

"euh, alright. well, i look forward to it??" He shrugged. "well, anyway, i'm glad i could help, berry. see you guys later." He sent the samples back to his office and plopped on Sans's lap.

Sans wrapped his arms around red with a happy little purr and cuddled him. 

Berry chuckled. "WE'LL SEE YOU TWO LATER. THANK YOU AGAIN"

Red purred back. "anything for you, berry. later."

Howl picked up the leash, and Daemon snuggled up to Berry as he ported them home.

* * *

The day after they went to see Red about Berry's magic, that Monday, was Howl and Berry's first hypnotherapy session. They each had an appointment one after the other, to make it easier, and of course Daemon was more than willing to wait in the waiting room with each of them while the other went in. He had some paperwork about some of the dogs from the shelter to go over, reviewing candidates for their personalized adoption policies. The small stack was pressed to his chest as he took Berry's hand to port everyone there.

"ready?"

"YES." He smiled up, taking Daemon's hand. "ARE YOU SET HOWL?" He held out his hand to Howl with a smile. He was looking forward to this. He really hoped it would help them both.

"YES, I AM READY." Howl didn't take Berry's hand, though, only held on to the leash. He was figuring it would be better to not stress out before this appointment, though he felt bad that Berry was rejected. "I WILL HOLD YOUR HAND AFTER, IS THAT FINE?"

Berry tried not to be hurt by the rejection, but he was. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly and plastered on a smile, hiding heartache. He grabbed his bandana that Howl gave him, feeling love from it and reminded himself it was okay. That Howl offered to hold his hand after it eased the aching pain of rejection. "YES," he blurted, "THAT WOULD BE GREAT."

Howl nodded, masking his own feelings of inadequacy. Berry asked for so little, for such simple things. The fact that Howl could not provide was, in his opinion, a terrible personal moral failure. He did his best not to show that on his face, however, only nodding.

"VERY WELL. LET US GO, THEN."

Daemon squeezed Berry's hand gently, then ported them. The office had a vaguely similar aesthetic to Candy's, calming and with zen-type posters and decorations and the like. The secretary jumped a little from their sudden appearance, banging his knee on his desk with a quiet swear.

"sorry," Daemon said with a wince, and the man shrugged.

Berry got closer to Daemon. He was still nervous about being out in public. He worked the bandana between his fingers. He squeezed Daemon's hand and rubbed his thumb over his datemates hand, offering comfort.

"it's alright, berry," he said, squeezing Berry's hand again. "let's go sit."

"YES, YOU TWO GET COMFORTABLE." Howl went up to the desk and signed them both in, filling out a form similar to the one they usually filled out with Ms. Candy. When he was called back, it was by what looked to be a bat monster, wearing a nice suit and with perky ears, tiny glasses, and a pleasant demeanor, even if he bumped into the doorway a little on his way. Howl followed him back into a room, only glancing back to offering them a reassuring nod and wave.

Berry sat next to Daemon and filled out the paperwork quickly. Then he cuddled close to Daemon, but didn’t take his hand so he could shuffle his own papers. He smiled and waved at Howl as he went in. The room didn't have many people or monsters in it, so that was good. "DO YOU WANT ANY HELP, DAEMON?" He offered.

"oh, you don't have to also write, it's really hard to do paperwork with two people," he admitted. "but you can read it and stuff, that's fine, and maybe help me decide? i have to make sure each doggy gets a really good, nice owner that matches up well."

"OKAY." It would help him not be so nervous and help Daemon narrow down the right people. It made him feel happy to be useful to Daemon. "YOU’RE SO GOOD FINDING THEM A FOREVER HOME." He took a set of paper.

He looked flattered and happy at that, beaming. "i'm glad you think so! every dog deserves a wonderful home and a nice master. like me!"

Berry's soul fluttered happily. "THEY DO. THEY'RE GOOD DOGS, BUT YOUR THE BEST PUPPY." He cuddled into Daemon's side and read.

Daemon smiled wider at that, flushing dark green. "thank you, berry." He snuggled back in and focused on his papers.

* * *

Howl came back out about fifty minutes later, looking a little emotionally drained but not traumatized, so that was probably a good sign. He came to sit on Berry's other side, while the bat monster peered around to find his next client.

"Mr. Aster?" he called.

No one bothered them for a while. Berry had two suggestions for dogs and masters for Daemon by the time Howl came back. He set down the papers he had been reading and offered Howl a warm smile.

"YOU ALRIGHT?" He looked up as his name was called, "ONE MOMENT PLEASE." He would not leave until he knew his datemate was okay.

Howl gave Berry a smile. "I AM ALRIGHT, KITTEN, THANK YOU. IT IS JUST A LITTLE EMOTIONALLY TIRING TELLING THE WHOLE STORY. GO ON, I WILL RECOVER FINE."

Berry's fingers twitched, wanting to hug Howl. He pet his bandana instead. "ALRIGHT. I LOVE YOU, ANGEL. AND YOU TOO, PUPPY."

"WE LOVE YOU AS WELL."

"mhm!"

They both waved. He got up and went to the doctor, just a tad bit scared. Doctors were scary after all. "HELLO. THANK YOU FOR WAITING."

When Berry approached the bat, he nodded and turned back around.

"Not a problem, sir, come along.”

He bumped into another doorway with a little squeak, then adjusted his glasses and led the way into a plush office room with a comfortable couch and more decor, and his computer and files.

"Please take a seat. So, you are Howl's lover, and wish for help with nesting?"

Berry blushed at the word ‘lover.’ "YES, I WAS GIVEN AVERSION THERAPY BY THE SANITARIUM. THEY DIDN'T WANT SULLY NESTING OR FEELING SAFE IN NESTS. I CANNOT BEAR TO BE IN A BED OR WRAPPED IN SOFT THINGS LIKE BLANKETS." He hugged himself. He was looking at the ground, "SOFT THINGS LIKE BLANKETS ARE BAD, AND BEDS ARE WORSE. NESTING PHYSICALLY HURTS."

"Aversive electroshock therapy, if I remember the press conference...?" He nodded, squinting hard as he typed. The font on his computer was huge to help him see. "So even when you want to nest, just touching the soft things recalls the physical pain and you can't. Right, yes. Well... I might use the same method as I discussed with Howl. It is probably very different from what you might expect. Have you ever heard of EMDR therapy?"

"THAT'S RIGHT. THEY ALSO LIKE TO BREAK BONES WHEN WE FAIL OUR TESTS WITHOUT THE COLLAR." He shook his head. "NO, I HAVEN'T, DOCTOR."

"Well, it means Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It is not quite the same as hypnotherapy, but it uses a similar principal of rewiring the mind to reduce the effect of the trigger. Essentially, some kind of back-and-forth stimulation is used, as you talk of the trauma, and the stimulation rewires the parts of the mind attached to the trauma that is giving you a pain or panic response. It is faster than traditional therapy, but must be done carefully and planned out beforehand. I must lay every step out so that you can replace the unwanted reaction correctly."

Berry nodded. "OH OKAY." He wasn't sure he understood too well, but Howl was going to try it, so he would try it too.

He glanced up again. "Well, do you think you understand and want to try it?"

"IT MIGHT HELP ME, RIGHT? I'LL TRY IT."

"Yes... but I will ask again, do you think you understand it? It is very important that you understand what will happen."

"KINDA," he said sheepishly. "YOU’RE GOING TO TRY AND REWRITE THE PAIN?"

"Not me," he said, shaking his head. "My input is extremely minimal. Let me try again. Ah... I would, for example, hold up a finger and move it back and forth, and you would follow it with your eyes. Or, I could use headphones, and play a sound on each side one at a time. As this happens, you talk about the trauma. You focus on what happened, the facts, and how you felt about it. This goes on for some time, perhaps half an hour, perhaps more or less time. Then I stop my finger or the sound, and you instead think and talk about something else. Anything else, just to switch topics for your mind. Doing this, the side-to-side motion, resets the instinctive reaction you have. You then think about what you want to do instead. The good thing you are striving for. Then, after you leave, you could touch soft blankets and not hurt. I am not telling you to think or feel in any way myself. It's all your mind resetting itself."

Berry looked amazed. It didn't seem too bad. He hated talking about it, but he really wanted to be able and do this. To cuddle happily in a blanket and have his omega instincts pleased without walking a razor’s edge of pain. "I UNDERSTAND. I WANT TO TRY IT, PLEASE. "

He nodded and typed more. "Good, we can spend this appointment planning out your goals and laying out what subject to focus on for each future appointment. It is all very quick, but even so, it may take a few weeks to get through everything. And even after that, even though the instinctive pain or panic is gone, you have to train yourself to associate something good. It will no longer hurt, but since you have not touched anything soft in so long without pain, you would be very unused to it, and not be sure how to feel, so you must teach yourself to like it. Does that make sense?"

"YES DOCTOR." Berry nodded and sat up a little taller. He thought, 'I CAN CUDDLE WITH DAEMON. THAT WILL MAKE IT POSITIVE.'

"Very well."

They spent the better part of an hour planning out each appointment, each step of the process, so Berry knew what to expect and how to tie it all into the rest of his therapy. Eventually, the bat dismissed him, leading him back out to the waiting room with a smile and wishing him luck until their next appointment.

Berry came out of the appointment hopeful. "THANK YOU, DOCTOR." He approached his mates. "I'M DONE." Seeing them always made him feel better. Berry smiled at them.

"You're welcome, I'll see you next week." He waved.

Howl looked up from his phone, and Daemon put down the last paper, beaming.

"hiya, berry!"

"DID IT GO ALRIGHT?"

"YES, WE SET EVERYTHING UP FOR MY NEXT FEW APPOINTMENTS." He was mentally tired, but he felt accomplished having a plan set in place.

"I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT."

Howl looked mostly recovered from his own appointment, after getting to sit for a while and relax. He took hold of the end of the leash and stood up.

"LET'S BE ON OUR WAY, THEN."

Daemon tucked the papers under one arm and reached for Berry's hand with a smile.

Berry smiled at Howl and happily took Daemon's hand and gave it a nice squeeze.

He squeezed back and then ported them all home.

* * *

The next day, Berry was anxious. It was his first cooking class after the press conference. Howl and Daemon were coming with him again, but it was still intimidating. He took some deep breaths and turned to look in the mirror. "YOU CAN DO THIS BERRY," he told himself. "GOING MAKES THE WHOLE FAMILY HAPPY, AND TODAY'S CLASS IS OMELETS." He remembered the small talk with Howl about how to make omelets. He and Daemon had tried the next day. They were a little overcooked, but Howl had said they were still good. "I'LL MAKE SOME GREAT ONES TODAY AND..." he blushed a little as the idea of feeding them made him forget his anxiety. "THEY CAN TRY IT TO."

The two of them were waiting by the door, as usual. Howl was wearing his armor, just in case of any altercations. Daemon looked a little nervous as well, absently petting the fluff of his hoodie as they waited. When Berry came out, however, they both smiled at him, not wanting him to worry.

"ready to go, sweetie?" Daemon asked.

"EVERYTHING WILL GO WELL, I WILL MAKE CERTAIN,” Howl promised.

Berry smiled happily at them. "YES, I AM." He had his bag and supplies on his shoulder. "THANK YOU, MY ANGEL." He gripped his collar to keep from reaching out to hold Howl's hand.

"OF COURSE." He nodded.

Daemon squeezed Berry's other hand, then lifted it and nuzzled it. He even kissed it gently, just a brush of his teeth against Berry's hand.

"make us something yummy~?"

He ported them to just inside. He would never port them outside the rec center again.

Berry turned bright blue as Daemon kissed his hand. "I'LL DO MY BEST."

"i know you will~" He nuzzled Berry's cheek next, as they approached the right door. "we'll be right here."

“YELL OR TEXT IF YOU NEED US, WE WILL RUN RIGHT IN,” Howl said.

"ALRIGHT MY LOVES." He squeezed Daemon's hand one last time and smiled at Howl before ending the classroom and taking his normal spot. Some humans and monsters were whispering to each other. Berry ignored it and set his bag down.

One monster, a mouse with a long scarf that Berry recognized from his own underground as a Swap monster, took a few slow steps towards Berry, nose twitching. But before he got too close, before he could say anything, the teacher bustled in and class began. Berry's soul stuttered a bit in fear as the mouse came towards him. He calmed as the teacher came in and the mouse stopped approaching him. As the teacher talked, he did his best to pay attention and keep the mouse’s movements in view.

The class seemed to go off without a hitch, everyone making their own omelets. But the Scarf Mouse kept looking over, tail curling and uncurling nervously.

When the class was over, he tried to approach again, this time trying to block the way to the door a bit to make sure Berry didn't just ignore him.

Berry took some deep breaths and squeezed his bandana. He would try to be polite. If the monster touched him, he would call for his datemates. After most of the people left, Berry stopped by the door the mouse was waiting at and made sure there was more than an arm’s length between them. "DID YOU WANT TO ASK SOMETHING?"

"Um... Not just ask... But could I... show you something?" Up close, the mouse looked very nervous, tail coming in front of himself as one hand fidgeted with it. Then he lifted his other hand, grabbing ahold of his scarf. After taking a deep breath, he pulled it down, peering up at Berry from within the confines of a Sully collar previously completely hidden.

Berry's guard dropped at the sight of the collar. He knew how much courage that took to do. He came closer, feeling a lot better about the situation. He said, "HI, MY NAME’S BERRY," and offered a kind smile.

The mouse smiled shakily, putting the scarf back. "I know... I saw you on the news. Does... does your mate really mean it when he says he'll protect us?"

"YES, HE DOES. HE WORKS VERY HARD TO HELP ALL OF US AND GET THE LAW CHANGED FOR OMEGAS. DID YOU KNOW OTHER RACES WANT TO HELP PROTECT OMEGAS? THEY ALL WANT TO HELP US, AND HOWL WILL LEAD THE WAY," Berry said proudly. "DO YOU WANT TO MEET THEM? THEY ARE WAITING IN THE HALL."

Scarf Mouse kept fidgeting with his tail and nodded slowly. "Okay... Just for a second..."

"ALL RIGHT, BY THE WAY WHAT IS YOUR NAME?" He stepped out of the class with him.

"Scarf Mouse..." He followed along quietly.

Howl and Daemon straightened up and bristled a little at Scarf Mouse, who shrank back.

Berry smiled at them gently, waving them closer. "HOWL, DAEMON, THIS IS SCARF MOUSE He SAW THE PRESS CONFERENCE.” He whispered, "he is like me.” His hand went to his bandana to press on his collar that laid under it, and he spoke louder again. “HE WANTED TO MEET US."

They both relaxed at Berry's words. Scarf Mouse nervously twitched again, then hesitantly waved.

"I... I wanted to ask if you'll really protect us...?"

"YES, OF COURSE." Howl nodded. "ESPECIALLY NOW THAT I KNOW WHO YOU ARE, I CAN USE MY POSITION TO ENSURE YOUR SAFETY."

Berry's smile was gentle. He was so happy and proud of his datemate. "HOWL ALWAYS DOES HIS BEST TO KEEP HIS WORD," he told the mouse monster. "DID YOU WANT TO EXCHANGE NUMBERS AND WE COULD TALK MORE?"

The mouse nodded slowly, but then looked down.

"I, I'm not allowed to have my phone... My sister says I can't own stuff since I'm Sully. But I could give you hers...?"

"NO PROBLEM. MY BROTHER OWNS MINE AS WELL, BUT LETS ME KEEP IT ON ME." He took out a piece of paper and wrote his name and number. "CALL ME WHEN YOU WANT TO TALK, I DON'T MIND. IS YOUR SISTER COMING TO GET YOU?"

He took the paper and nodded, tucking it away. "Yes, she should be here any minute..."

"we'll stay until she gets here, if you want?" Daemon offered.

Berry nodded. The Swap guards had given him a lesson just outside here. "YES, IT’S BEST NOT TO BE ALONE."

"Okay... Thanks." He smiled, relaxing a little. "You guys are so cool and brave..."

Howl puffed up at the praise, preening a little and examining the tips of his phalanges.

"NATURALLY. I WORK VERY HARD TO BE THIS COOL. OF COURSE, I AM INNATELY COOL AS WELL, BUT ANYONE CAN BE COOL IF THEY TRY."

"But brave too! I couldn't talk like that to cameras, to the entire world... It's too scary..."

"BRAVERY IS DOING THINGS EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE SCARY. IT IS NOT NEVER BEING SCARED. YOU CAN DO IT. BUT IT IS ALRIGHT IN'F YOU DOT. IT DOESN'T MAKE YOU A COWARD TO TRY AND PROTECT YOURSELF."

Berry blushed at the praise and nodded in agreement. "IT WAS VERY SCARY, BUT IT WAS WORTH IT IF IT HELPS OTHERS."

The Scarf Mouse nodded slowly, fidgeting with his scarf. "So you think... If I talk about what happened to me... It'll help?"

"YES, I DO.” Howl said. “IT MAY ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO TALK ABOUT IT TOO. AND THE MORE VICTIMS SPEAK OUT, THE HARDER IT IS TO SAY THEY ARE LYING."

"it's really dumb that they don't believe us in the first place, but that just means we gotta keep trying," Daemon agreed.

Pride was swelling in Berry. He had gotten someone to speak up by doing what Howl had said, it really was helping others. It was a great feeling, having Scarf Mouse talk with him. "YES, AND HAVING EACH OTHER TO TALK TO WILL BE NICE. WE KNOW WHAT IT WAS LIKE THERE, SO WE CAN HELP EACH OTHER."

Scarf Mouse nodded shyly. "Okay... Then... Then I'll think about it... and talk with my sister... but I can't promise anything."

"THAT'S QUITE ALRIGHT, YOU DON'T HAVE TO," Howl assured.

"I KNOW IT'S SCARY." Berry said, "BUT IF YOU JUST WANT TO TALK WITH SOMEONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, YOU’RE WELCOME TO CALL ME AND WE CAN SIT TOGETHER DURING CLASS IF YOU WANT."

He nodded. "Okay, I'd like that. Thank you..."

"Mousey!"

A red monster with devil horns and eyes shaped like crosses came trotting over. She slowed upon seeing the group. Scarf Mouse's ears perked up.

"Hi, Jester."

Berry waved to the new monsters shyly, "HELLO."

"Hi..." Jester looked between them. "Are you being nice to my brother?"

"Yeah, they're okay. They're the ones from the news,” Scarf Mouse said.

"I know. Nice to meet you."

"A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU AS WELL," Howl replied.

"MY NAME IS BERRY. THESE ARE MY DATeMATES, HOWL AND DAEMON." Berry thought, 'proper introductions are always a good place to start.'

"I know," she repeated. "I saw the news. Just wondering if you're really like that."

"sure we are!" Daemon smiled. "i'm a good boy, and master's super great!"

"They were being nice to me," Scarf Mouse said. Jester hummed, then nodded.

"Okay, if they were nice, then I believe them."

Berry smiled happily. "I GAVE SCARF MOUSE MY NUMBER. YOU’RE BOTH WELCOME TO CALL ME IF YOU WANT TO TALK."

"Hmm..." Jester rocked back and forth a little. "Okay. But if you be mean to my brother and make him cry, I'll make you cry."

"THAT'S QUITE FAIR," Howl agreed with a nod. "ONE MUST ALWAYS STICK UP FOR FAMILY."

"I UNDERSTAND. I'LL DO MY BEST TO BE A GOOD FRIEND," Berry said.

"uh-huh," Daemon agreed. "you're a wonderful sister."

"I know!" She beamed. "Alright, Mousey, let's go home."

"Okay. Bye guys..." Scarf Mouse shyly waved, then scampered off after Jester.

Berry waved back. Then he turned to his mates. "I'VE NEVER HAD ANYTHING LIKE THIS HAPPEN BEFORE,” he said in awe.

"I ADMIT, I WASN'T SURE IF ANYONE WOULD COME FORWARD MYSELF," Howl said. "BUT I AM GLAD HE DID. WE ARE ADVOCATES NOW, BERRY. WE ARE GIVING PEOPLE HOPE."

"you did great, and we're super proud of you!" Daemon agreed.

Berry blushed. "IT FEELS NICE GIVING MONSTERS HOPE AND MAKING THEIR LIVES BETTER." He took Daemon's hand.

"YES, IT DOES."

"mhm, being helpful is nice." Daemon ported them home. "do we get to taste your food~?"

"OH, I ALMOST FORGOT." He reached into his bag and pulled out the tupperware. "I THINK THIS ONE CAME OUT GREAT. IT'S CHEESE, HAM, AND GREEN ONIONS." He held it out to the both of them.

Daemon beamed and grabbed two forks. It was still nice and warm, so they each went ahead and took a bite. The taller brother made a pleased sound.

"it's really tasty! i like ham and onions a lot."

"YES, THE CONSISTENCY IS GOOD, AND THERE ISN'T TOO MUCH OR TOO LITTLE OF THE ADDITIONS," Howl said approvingly. "I LIKE THE TEXTURE. WELL DONE."

Berry eyelights were stars. "I'M SO HAPPY YOU LIKE IT." Today was turning into a marvelous day. His soul was feeling a lot better than it had in a long time. "WHEN YOU’RE DONE, DO YOU THINK WE COULD ALL SIT ON THE COUCH AND HOLD HANDS?"

"YES, I'D LIKE THAT,” Howl said.

They both finished the food, and Howl cleaned up briefly before they all settled on the couch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter tags: needles/magic drawing, therapy/discussion of hypnotherapy and EMDR  
> Chapter summary: Berry, Howl and Daemon go to Red and Sans's place for Red to take samples on Berry's magic. He tells a funny story about his last name, Russel, as he does so. After taking the samples and examining them, he tells Berry that Gaster's magic and repeated bone breaks cause his lack of ability to use magic, so magic filtering, acupuncture, and massage may restore magic function. The next day, Howl and Berry each have their first hypnotherapy session, wherein their new therapist, a bat, tells them each about EMDR and explains how it works, saying it may work better. Most details are glossed over. They are each emotionally tired afterwards but hopeful. The day after that is the first cooking class after the press conference, and they are all worried about an altercation. It seems that a mouse wants to talk to Berry in class, which scares him, but it turns out Scarf Mouse is also Sully and wanted confirmation that the Fellswaps will really protect them all. Berry reassures him, and takes him to Daemon and Howl, who also reassure him. Howl talks about bravery, and promises Scarf Mouse doesn't have to tell his story, but it may help, and Scarf Mouse says he'll consider it. They briefly meet his sister, Jester, who says she believes they're nice, but will hurt them if they upset her brother. They all agree this is fair, and make arrangements so Scarf Mouse may call and talk with a fellow Sully if he wants later. Berry and the brothers feel good that they are having a positive influence on at least one Sully.


	21. Please Don't Make Any Sudden Moves, You Don't Know the Half of the Abuse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there are lots of dresses, and someone who loves them a lot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, just so you know, you should subscribe to the overall series, because later this week, I'm throwing up a oneshot that takes place between this chapter and the next one ; ) You don't wanna miss it!
> 
> If you want to know what the glue story is read:[Sticky Sexcapades](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29255655)
> 
> Tags: flirting, monster racism, mention of old injuries, discussion of victim-blaming

The morning after class, there was another major news break. Howl watched the television intently as he knitted. Reporters were discussing another subset of monsters that had just reached the surface. The new Queen, another goat woman, seemed friendlier than the hated Swap Queen, but not extremely similar to the Fell Queen. No, this one - Queen Mary, as she was revealed to be called, had a form-fitting purple dress on, wonderful and lovely but low in the front, as she spoke with confidence to the reporter and camera. She explained that their fallen human had already told them much about human culture and what was and wasn't appropriate, and they were thrilled to acquiesce to what all the other monster kingdoms had. She seemed extremely keen on mentioning, multiple times, that her people were safe and not a threat and would do nothing to anyone without permission. The repeated reassurance made him uneasy. He kept scanning to be knowledgeable, but he didn't much like this.

"BERRY, WHEN YOU GO OUT TODAY, BE CAREFUL," he said, as Berry got ready to go shopping with Red. "BE VERY AWARE OF WHO'S AROUND, AND USE THE PANIC BUTTON IF YOU NEED IT, ALRIGHT?"

Berry nodded. "ALRIGHTY." He was excited and nervous about the new monsters. He wondered when they would meet the new skeletons. His brother was on leave. Or maybe Sans had met them? No one had said anything about them coming to family game night yet. "DO YOU THINK ANYONE IN THE FAMILY HAS MET THEM YET?"

"AS FAR AS I KNOW, NO, NOT YET. EVERYTHING IS STILL GETTING SETTLED WITH THEM LEGALLY. I BELIEVE THERE ARE STILL SOME IN LINE FOR ID'S," he said, shaking his head. "BUT I'M SURE IT WILL NOT BE TERRIBLY LONG BEFORE WE BUMP INTO SOMEONE. JUST BE CAREFUL, PLEASE. I AM... CONCERNED."

Berry's soul skipped a beat at Howl's uncertainty. "I'LL BE DILIGENT AND ON THE LOOKOUT."

"GOOD, THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE IT. CALL ME TO KEEP ME POSTED." He took Berry's hand and squeezed it gently.

Berry's soul fluttered as Howl took his hand without Berry having to ask. Squeezing back gently he said, "I WILL."

Red popped in, stuffing his wallet in his pocket and looking a little nervous. "hey..."

When Red popped in, Berry looked over. "HELLO RED."

"GOOD." He let go then and nodded his head to Red. "YOU BE CAREFUL WHILE OUT TODAY. WATCH OUT FOR BERRY."

"oh, yeah, sure thing, buddy." Red shrugged and nodded, then reached out to take Berry's hand instead. "let's get going, then?" With a pop, he pulled Berry to the sidewalk of another strip mall nearby.

"SO." Berry took a quick look around. "LET GO TO THE BRIDAL STORE AND PLAY DRESS UP." He giggled. "I NEED TO FIND A GOOD DRESS TO WEAR TO YOUR WEDDING."

Red was flushed a dark crimson, using an extra hand to pull up the hood of his jacket. "ok, but, but we're just looking! i mean, you can get what you want, but i'm just looking! i haven't, uh- i'm-" He was very flustered.

"WEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TOLD ME NOT TO ASHAMED?" He took Red's arm and walked towards the store. "IF YOU SEE SOMETHING YOU LIKE, WE CAN GO INTO A PRIVATE DRESSING ROOM."

"i mean, yeah, but that's different! i mean, you're really good looking. you know, no homo." He grimaced as he said it, then gestured to his face. "this ugly mug ain't the same."

"RED YOU'RE VERY GOOD LOOKING-" Berry was cut short as Red stopped short suddenly, pushing Berry behind him and tensing up.

Outside the bridal shop, there was a skeleton, an unfamiliar one. He was taller than Red, but not by much, only a few inches. He was dressed in skinny jeans and long blue boots, with very slight heels. His shirt was short, ribs peeking out underneath, a vivid cyan heart right where his actual soul would be. His jacket had no sleeves, but the fluff edges of the hood were overly luxurious. Fingerless gloves were tugged one at a time as the skeleton stared in the window with an expression of unabashed longing.

Red had taken Howl’s warning to heart, watching carefully. Berry submitted to the alpha's protection. but peeked around to look at the other skeleton. They were stylish, and he didn't feel any ill intent. "Hi," he said meekly.

The skeleton looked over, first noticing Red's protective stance, his hand on the other skeleton. Then he saw Berry, not at all scared, but a bit shy. Red could practically see the conclusion the guy drew.

"well, aren't you two a cute couple?" the stranger asked, his voice all velvet and silk, sockets batting coyly. He came strolling closer leisurely, like he was gliding across the ground. Red flushed, surprised.

"uh, we're not- this is- we're brothers-in-law."

"oh!" Genuine surprise. "my deepest apologies~ so does that mean... one of you might be... available~?" He was right in front of Red now, leaning in a little, one hand pressed to his own chest. "because baby, i'd really like it if you gripped me as tight as you're gripping him."

Red made a sputtering sound, genuinely shocked, face vividly colored. He smelled like apples.

Berry was shaken at the forwardness of this skeleton and the innuendo had him a little in shock, but he was happy it made his point about Red being good looking. He knew Red would keep them safe and would port if they needed to, so he introduced them. "MY NAME IS BERRY AND THIS IS RED. MAY WE HAVE YOUR NAME?" Berry asked.

"jack rose, at your service." The skeleton bowed a little, then looked back up with lidded sockets. "and that service can be anything~ you~ want~"

Red made another sputtering noise, then let go of Berry just to wave his good hand in the guy's face.

"i-i'm taken!" he insisted. "i'm engaged!"

Jack Rose zeroed in on the ring, taking Red's wrist only to hold it still and look closely.

"oh, how lovely a color! very gorgeous! congratulations, sweetie." His tone completely shifted, no longer sultry and lilting and instead friendly and more PG.

"y-yeah. thanks. uh. berry's taken too!" Red went on.

"aw, isn't that lovely? i'm happy for both of you and your mates."

"THANK YOU. IT’S NICE TO MEET YOU." Berry had a confused look. "WHAT SERVICE?"

"berry," Red muttered, "he was coming on to us."

Jack Rose tittered a little, letting go of Red's wrist to cover his mouth with one hand. His purplish eyelights shined. "i was just flirting, sweetie. i'm used to, ah, providing sexual favors, let's say. don't worry about it~"

"OH..." That made Berry very uncomfortable. Jack Rose was tempting, openly? The small monster wasn't sure how to respond. He held on to Red.

Red held on to Berry again in turn. "look," he said, "we skeletons all try and get together and stuff, but you can't do that, okay?"

Jack Rose tilted his head. "alright... my apologies. i'll avoid flirting with my new friends." His smile was almost tight.

"BROTHER, WHERE ON EARTH DID YOU- AH!"

The new skeleton looked over as another came into view. This one was tall, like Pap, like Vex, strutting along in similar pants and boots than his brother, though the boots were yellow. His coat had sleeves, long, right up to short white gloves. His ribcage was completely bare, a shapely slip of pink that seemed to be halfway between a corset and a leotard only starting underneath said ribs, stretching down over the pants. A belt held it all together.

Jack Rose perked up, "tai! tai, c'mere. these are new friends!"

Tai looked them up and down, examining, and before he could say a word, Jack Rose hurried on.

"not to be flirted with. platonic friends."

Tai smiled and bowed slightly. "A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU BOTH! I'M GLAD TO MAKE FRIENDS SO QUICKLY, WE ARE A BIT DAUNTED BY ALL THE NEW THINGS."

Berry smiled, "IT'S NICE TO MEET YOU." When Jack Rose said not to be flirted with, that made Berry feel a lot better. He introduced them. These two seemed very nice, if just a bit forward. "THE SURFACE CAN BE A SCARY PLACE," Berry agreed, "BUT IT'S EASIER WITH FRIENDS. WE'RE GOING DRESS SHOPPING. DID YOU WANT TO COME?"

"IT CAN BE INDEED! HUMANS ARE INTERESTING. BUT I'M GLAD YOU'RE NICE!" Tai responded.

"ah, dress shopping?" Jack Rose looked back at the bridal shop, that longing expression on his face again. "i should just get out of your hair, actually, i-"

"MY BROTHER WOULD LOVE TO GO DRESS SHOPPING WITH YOU!" Tai interrupted, steering Jack Rose to the doors.

"w-wait, bro-"

"UNFORTUNATELY, I CANNOT, AS I AM SEARCHING FOR A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT STORE, MYSELF! YOU THREE HAVE FUN, THOUGH!"

Red tilted his head, blinking owlishly.

Berry smiled and pulled on Red’s arm. "LET'S GO. THEY SEEM VERY NICE."

Red looked at Tai gently preventing Jack Rose from trying to slink away, then at Berry.

"...ok. but if they get to be too much, just tell me, okay? promise me."

"OKAY."

They both headed over and went inside. Tai cheerily pushed Jack Rose in with them, then disappeared down the sidewalk. Jack Rose stuck his hands in his pockets, then grimaced at them.

"so... you guys have fun... i'll watch."

Berry smiled at Jack Rose. "YOU SEEM TO BE FASHION FORWARD." He looked through the racks. "DO YOU HAVE ANY ANY SUGGESTIONS? I WAS THINKING OF MAYBE WEARING SOMETHING PRETTY, BUT I DON'T WANT TO SHOW MY UPPER ARMS. AND RED MIGHT GET A WEDDING DRESS IF HE SEES ON HE LIKES."

"me?" Jack Rose echoed. "w-what makes you think that?"

"I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT FASHION, BUT YOUR CLOTHES LOOK LIKE SOMETHING IN THE HUMAN MAGAZINES FOR FASHION." Berry pulled down a light blue bridesmaid dress. It was very plain. "OH, I LIKE THIS COLOR."

He started tugging at his gloves again. "oh, these? well, they're just..." He looked at the dress Berry picked and scrunched up his face.

Red poked at the dress Berry picked out. "it's alright, sure."

"it's boring," Jack Rose sighed, giving in and going over. "look at this hemline. it's not even well done, and this kind of top isn't great for a skeletal body unless you use ecto. if you want to look pretty and elegant, a mermaid dress would do you well. it would give you more height, but it's still not extravagant, so it won't upstage the bride. most bridesmaids dresses don't have long sleeves, though. you'll have to get one custom made. i suggest sleeves that loosen at the ends like bell sleeves, personally, because the shape is much like the rest of the dress."

Red stared at him with some awe. "you know a lot."

Jack Rose grimaced again. "it's a hobby..."

Berry smiled happily, delighted that his hunch had been right. "CAN YOU SHOW ME WHAT A MERMAID DRESS IS? MAYBE WE CAN GET A DRESS ALTERED TO HAVE SLEEVES? I DON'T KNOW ANYONE WHO CAN MAKE A DRESS."

"mermaid dresses are form-fitting around the middle, and flare out around the knee, looking great and still easy to walk in. they'd still look better with ecto, but it's not as necessary." Jack Rose put the other one back and walked along the line.

"do you just know a lot, or do you make them?" Red wondered, catching on to Berry.

"well... i've designed a few things..." He pulled out a mermaid dress, dark green. "it looks like this, but you look like you want blue, so not this one specifically, i'm sure."

"YES, I WOULD WANT BLUE. BUT I CAN TRY IT ON." He was thrilled, walking up and looking for one that might fit. "YOU MUST BE VERY TALENTED. MAYBE YOU COULD MAKE IT FOR ME?"

Jack Rose blushed, a vivid pinkish-purple color. "you don't know anything about what i've made."

The door opened and Tai struck a pose from the doorway. "BY THE WAY, IN CASE HE HASN'T MENTIONED IT YET, JACK ROSE DESIGNED MY ENTIRE OUTFIT HEAD TO TOE!" He kicked up a leg and slid a hand down his front, then disappeared again almost as quickly as he would have if he'd shortcutted. His brother flushed brighter. Red snickered.

Berry giggled. Tai reminded him of Papyrus. "WELL NOW WE DO. WHAT WOULD YOU THINK THE BRIDE WOULD LOOK GOOD IN?" He hugged Red. "WE CAN BOTH TRY ON STUFF AND SEE WHAT WE LIKE AND DON'T LIKE ABOUT IT. THIS WE BE FUN!" His eyelights morphed into bright blue stars.

"well..." Jack Rose looked Red up and down, and Red shuffled shyly. "...i'd have to know a bit more about you and what you like, sweetie. but-"

"Good afternoon, do you have an appointment?" a human man interrupted, a tight smile on his face. Jack Rose shrank back, taking a step away.

"NO, BUT WE WANT TO SEE WHAT TYPE OF DRESS WOULD LOOK GOOD ON US FOR A WEDDING," Berry said happily. "OUR FRIEND IS HELPING US WITH STYLE." He held up the mermaid dress. "DO YOU HAVE THIS IN BLUE?"

The human looked between them, expression still tight. "Well, you don't need your friend to do my job, I can help you just fine. So why doesn't he just wait outside while I show you something I'm sure you'll like?"

Jack Rose chuckled softly, then turned around to leave. "it's alright, you two have fun..."

Red looked between them. Then he frowned. "actually," he said, flipping off the human, "fuck you. c'mon, berry. we'll find a different shop. you too, jack."

He stomped towards the door, looping his other arm with Jack Rose's. The new skeleton stumbled, surprised, but then followed with wide sockets.

Berry handed the man the dress. "YOU'RE NOT VERY NICE." He followed them out of the store and took Red's other arm.

The man muttered something like "Good riddance," as he put the dress back. Red huffed, pulling them both along.

"you, you didn't have to stick up for me," Jack Rose said. "we only just got out, i'm sure most people misunderstand us, and anyway, i'm only an amateur-"

"he was gonna hike up all the prices to ridiculous levels and throw in a bunch of subtle jabs,” Red huffed. “i know the type. we'll go somewhere else."

"WE DON'T NEED TO GIVE OUR BUSINESS TO SOMEONE MEAN." Berry nodded in agreement with Red.

"well, um... alright... by the way, ah, it's jack rose, not just jack."

"alright," Red said. "my bad. jack rose. let's go." He ported them to the bus stop. "there's another place across town, but it's a bit too far for me to take two people along with me. so the bus it is."

Berry pulled out his phone and sent Howl a text. [JUST CHECKING IN. WE ARE FINE. THE DRESS SHOP WAS NOT GOOD SO WE ARE GOING TO TAKE THE BUS ACROSS TOWN. WE MADE A NEW FRIEND TOO. HIS NAME IS JACK ROSE. HE’S A REALLY NICE SKELETON AND HE HAS A NICE BROTHER NAMED TAI. LOVE YOU.]

After a moment, Howl responded. [I AM GLAD TO HEAR IT. THESE NEW SKELETONS ARE NOT BEING PUSHY? OR TOO... OPEN? RED IS KEEPING YOU SAFE?]

Jack Rose caught his brother's eye, eavesdropping from a distance, and rolled his pupils. He pulled out his own phone to text something.

[RED IS DOING A WONDERFUL JOB AS NORMAL. AT THE BEGINNING, JACK ROSE WAS FILITING WITH RED, BUT ONCE RED TOLD HIM WE HAD DATEMATES, HE STOPPED AND HAS BEEN VERY NICE. <3]

[I SEE. SO LONG AS THEY KEEP THEIR HANDS TO THEMSELVES, THEN FINE. I'M GLAD. BE SAFE, I LOVE YOU, SEE YOU LATER.]

Berry put his phone away. "SO, JACK ROSE, WHAT DID YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT RED TO MAKE HIM SAY YES TO THE DRESS?"

Jack Rose glanced up from his phone, tucking it away again. "well, what kind of dresses he's liked before could help."

"oh, me?" Red asked, shuffling. "well, uh... i haven't... ever worn one in public... only tried a few on, but..."

"are you shy?" Jack Rose asked playfully.

"i don't wanna look helpless... but i wanna look, um, good, and kinda sexy..."

"RED YOU HAVE SUCH A STRONG PRESENCE!” Berry assured. “NO ONE WOULD THINK YOUR HELPLESS. I'M SURE YOU CAN ROCK ANY DRESS YOU TRY ON."

Red rubbed his cheek a little. "i dunno..." The bus came, and they all got on. Jack Rose got distracted by it for a moment, a little alarmed at the sound and smell. But when they were settled, he pulled a notebook out.

"here..." he said. "why don't you look through these?" He opened it to reveal cutouts of dresses from magazines, and sketches of even more dresses.

Berry looked over Red's shoulder, looking at the book too. He pointed to one. “OH, THAT’S REALLY PRETTY, WHAT DO YOU THINK?” It was a beautiful white layered dress with black ribbon and some black lace.

Red looked at all of them in awe. At the one Berry pointed out, he hummed. "i dunno... it's kinda poofy, and the sleeves are long, and it's a lotta white..."

"you want something not white?" Jack Rose turned a few pages. "what color?"

"red, probably," Red said.

"let's see... there's a few, here's a red one with black lacing." He pointed to another one that was a cutout picture, all red and elegant, the lacing smooth and sexy.

"ah, that one has no white."

"so red and white? alright, let's see... i don't think i have any already like that, but i can make modifications. you can always dye certain parts."

"THAT'S A GREAT IDEA!" Berry smiled at Jack Rose. "DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER DRESSES LIKE THIS IN YOUR BOOK?"

"i have lots," he said, and flipped some pages again. "now, you wanted to look at a blue mermaid dress, here's one i saw once. it doesn't have the bell sleeves, but that's alright. they're long and you could add lace. it's also covering enough you don't need to use any ecto if you don't want to."

"OOOH THATS SO PRETTY." He cooed.

"yeah." He smiled. "see how it still won't upstage the bridal dress, but it's much nicer? bridesmaids dresses need to be elegant and unique. you only wear them once, after all.”

"WELL THAT IS A VERY PRETTY DRESS." He squeezed his bandana and blushed, "I COULD MAYBE WEAR IT ON A DATE OR SOMETHING. I WOULD HATE TO WEAR IT ONLY ONE TIME."

"well, traditionally, bridesmaid dresses are just to wear to a wedding, since they're so fancy and expensive... but nothing's stopping you," Jack Rose assured. “are there any other bridesmaids?"

Red shook his head. "no, but my mom is coming, she needs a dress. she’ll probably go shopping on her own, though... also tori, the fell queen, but i think she can handle her own dress, heh. uhh, frisk is gonna be a flower person. baby pucci is gonna be the ring bearer. i think everyone else is wearing tuxes and stuff."

Berry nodded along with Red's words. "WHAT DID YOU WANT PUCCI TO WEAR? A DRESS, A GOWN, OR A ONESIE?"

"oh, uh, i dunno? it's not for a few months, so, i'm not sure how big they'll be, i mean they were just born."

"a baby?" Jack Rose smiled. "well, if you're not sure what gendered clothing, you could go with a dress with pants? the best of all worlds."

"hey, that sounds cool!"

"THAT WOULD BE SO CUTE." Berry pulled out his cell phone. "THIS IS OUR NIBLING, CAPPUCCINO ASTER RUSSELL."

Jack Rose's pupils turned into little heart shapes. "they're so cute and precious."

"heh, yeah." Red grinned. "their dad is my brother, vex, and berry's brother, stretch, carried them. they were born exactly a week ago."

"it must have been so great having a birth!" Jack Rose sighed longingly. "the best day of their lives?"

Guilt gnawed at Berry. "IT SHOULD'VE BEEN." He just couldn’t let go of the blame. 'IF I HAD BEEN MORE CAREFUL,' he thought.

~~Stupid. Useless. Good for only two things.~~

Tears lined Berry’s sockets, and he took a deep breath. He tried to cut off the damned voice. He told himself, "I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE TO BLAME. THE QUEEN GAVE THE ORDER.’

The new skeleton tilted his head, his smile fading a little. "what happened? what's wrong?"

Red looked away, taking one of Berry's hands. "a lot happened, actually... there's a whole political mess, and... uh, well, we're here! so let's talk about that stuff later." He got up as the bus came to a stop. Jack Rose slowly closed his sketchbook and put it away again.

Berry followed as Red pulled him along, trying to push away the thoughts 'TODAY IS ABOUT DRESS SHOPPING AND GETTING SOME PICTURES,’ he reminded himself as he forced a smile. “IS THE STORE CLOSE BY?” he asked as he dried his sockets.

"yeah. yeah, it's not far. c'mon, guys." Red led the way off the bus, with the other two skeletons following close behind. He then ported them closer, up to another bridal shop that seemed smaller, but vibrant. "i heard this place is nice to monsters and does some custom fits."

"THAT IS GREAT TO HEAR," Berry said.

"that's good. you probably don't even need me..." Jack Rose said with a smile.

"but i want your help," Red huffed, making their new friend blush.

"YEP YOU’RE VERY WONDERFUL! WE WANT YOU TO COME WITH US AND THAT REMINDS ME. WE DO A FAMILY GAME NIGHT ONCE A WEEK. ALL OF US SKELETONS GO. IT IS USUALLY AT MY BROTHER'S AS HE HAS A LARGE HOUSE AND CAN FIT US. WOULD YOU AND YOUR BROTHER WANT TO COME?"

Jack Rose blushed, that purplish-pink color again, and rubbed one cheek. "you want us to come? to your family night? even though we, ah...?"

"look," Red said. "you're more than welcome as long as you don't... uh, well, just don't talk about sexual stuff, that's all. for one thing, there's a baby. and for another, some of us got trauma is all. so it's something we keep out of conversation. you can do whatever the fuck you want on your own time. you know, long as it doesn't hurt innocent people."

"i understand." He nodded, looking serious. "we'll be careful." He then looked a little wry. "only innocent people, hmm?"

Red shrugged. "you guys don't look sharp like my and daemon's cultures, so i bet you haven't killed, but... i have."

"WAS THAT THE SAME SPEECH YOU GAVE THE FELLSWAPS?" Berry asked.

"no?" Red gave him a weird look. "that sex part is, you know..." Because of Howl. "i gave them a 'murder is illegal' talk."

"I MEANT THE LOOKING SHARP PART." Berry giggled. He pulled out this phone. "LET ME GET YOUR NUMBER, JACK ROSE, AND I'LL GIVE YOU MINE."

"oh, i mean, yeah. i asked to check them and stuff."

Jack Rose regarded Red. "so can i check you two?"

"go crazy, man. and yeah, give us your number."

Jack Rose gently took Berry's phone to put in his number and checked Berry as he did so.

>   
> Blueberry Aster ~~sully~~
> 
> HP:10  
> ATK:1  
> DEF:5  
> LV:1
> 
> * Working hard to get better.

Berry let the check roll through him. Jack Rose's brow went up. He checked Red, and Red, too, didn't look perturbed.

>   
> Red
> 
> HP: 1  
> ATK: 1  
> DEF: 1  
> LV: 8
> 
> * A survivor

"wow... heh. you guys really are just like me." Jack Rose smiled wryly. "you can check me too, if you want, but you won't see much that's a surprise."

Berry checked him.

>   
> Jack Rose Haart
> 
> HP: 1  
> ATK: 1  
> DEF: 1  
> LV: 1
> 
> * Once bitten, twice…

He shrugged, sticking his hands in his pockets. "my brother is very impressive, i bet he's more fun to check."

Berry smiled. "I BET. HE SEEMS VERY COOL." When he got his phone back, he texted his and Red’s number to Jack Rose. "LET'S GO SEE WHAT THIS STORE HAS TO OFFER." He took Red's arm and asked Jack Rose, "IS IT ALRIGHT IF I TAKE YOUR ARM TO?"

"he is very cool." He put his hands back in his pockets, but then at the offer, looked surprised again. He smiled and pulled out one hand to link arms. "whatever you'd like, sweetie."

Red led the way inside. There was a smaller array of dresses, but there was still plenty.

Berry smiled as the new skeleton relaxed. When they got in he went to the dresses. He found one in a beautiful blue color in almost his size. It came with a matching wrap. He held it up and asked Jack Rose, "COULD YOU MAKE SLEEVES WITH THIS WRAP?"

Jack Rose looked it over. "well, i could. i bet i could find you one that already has sleeves, but try it on, if they've got your size. you should try on a few before picking."

Berry nodded. "OKAY." He pulled out a few different ones in both his and Red's sizes, just for red to try on. "DO YOU SEE ANY YOU LIKE RED?"

Red picked through them nervously. A woman came up, smiling warmly. "Can I help you three?"

Before Jack Rose could shrink back again, Red glanced over. "my friend's helping."

"That's alright, but I can also tell you what we have, or find something you don't see, if you'd like."

"okay... uh, yeah. i..." Red faltered.

"do you have anything red and white?" Jack Rose asked, saving Red. The woman nodded and went off to one of the other shelves to look through.

Berry smiled happily. That went way better than the last store. He had pulled out three dresses and set them to the side. One for Red to try on for fun and two for himself.

Red looked at the one Berry had pulled out for him, humming over it, and Jack Rose looked with Berry, inspecting some. "by the way," he hummed, "if you see one that isn't even close to your size, pull it out anyway, because they might have one closer to your size in the back."

"OKAY." When the human came back he asked, "MAY WE TRY THESE ON?"

"Of course." She held out three red and white dresses. "Do you want the same fitting room, or two different ones? You could help each other, it's quite hard to zip up bridal dresses on your own."

Berry wasn't sure. He only really was naked for showers and punishment. He knew Red would never hurt him and he could keep his pants, but the idea made him shiver and hug himself. He looked at the ground. "Separate ones please."

"yeah, separate's better," Red agreed nervously. The woman smiled and nodded, then led them to two side-by-side fitting rooms and handed over the dresses.

Berry thanked her and asked Jack Rose, "WHEN WE COME OUT AND LOOK INTO THE MIRROR, CAN YOU TAKE PICTURES OF US, PLEASE?" He held out his phone.

"sure i can!" He beamed and took the phone. "just let me know if you need help zipping up the back, too."

"yeah, alright," Red said. He took his dresses and headed into one room, then nervously looked through them. He didn't know what to feel or if any were better than the others, so he picked one at random to wear first.

Berry took the mermaid dress with the matching wrap and tried that one on first. He didn't summon his ecto. He didn't like it. Really it was only present with heats or if he was forced to summon it by the guards. All the dresses he picked out had tiny bust areas in them. He was able to get the dress half zipped. It was snug, it kinda flattened over the area where the hole was in his ribs. He pulled the wrap over his scarred arms. 'MAYBE THIS WASN'T A GOOD IDEA,' he told himself as he looked in the mirror.

Red was having a similar crisis, although not quite the same. He summoned his own ecto to fill out the first dress, one very poofy with quite a bit of toole at the skirts. The sweetheart neckline was nice, and the pattern of red lace was kinda cool, but... ugh. This toole. The size. The one strap. He rubbed the wrist of his bad hand as he looked in the mirror, feeling the unmatched mitten was horribly out of place and obvious. But a bone-tight glove would hurt badly being put on, and the plate would be visible... He nervously shifted from foot to foot, taking a few deep breaths.

Jack Rose waited outside patiently, leaned on the wall, worrying with his gloves again.

Berry opened the door a little and peeked out. Tears lined his sockets as he tried to stay positive, "JACK ROSE CAN YOU MAKE THIS WORK OR SHOULD WE TRY A DIFFERENT KIND OF DRESS?" he asked sadly.

He looked up, then came right over. "what's the problem, sweetie?" He looked it up and down, and noticed the odd indent at the chest area. "are you... injured?"

He couldn't look him in the eyelights. His arms came down subconsciously to cover it. The wrap slid down with the motion, showing his scared arms and clavicle that had healed over a few weeks ago. "IT'S OLD, BUT I'M MISSING PART OF SOME RIBS."

Jack Rose looked at Berry's arms, the newly healed break, and his pupils dimmed a little. But he smiled anyway. "this dress itself might not work, but if we find one with a high neckline in the back, you could wear a very simple smooth corset underneath. That would make everything look flat. no individual ribs, no ecto needed."

That had a small smile blooming on Berry’s face. "OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THE GREAT IDEAS. I'LL ASK THE HUMAN TO FIND ME ONE." He went to take off the dress and throw his cloth back on.

"no no, i'll do it, don't you worry." He patted Berry's hand gently; his own was extremely warm.

"THANK YOU, JACK ROSE." Berry squeezed his hand back. Idly, he wondered if he was part dragon too. He was warm like Damon.

When Jack Rose left, he knocked on Red's door. "ARE YOU OKAY IN THERE? DO YOU NEED HELP WITH THE ZIPPER?"

Red startled a little from where he'd been worriedly staring at his mitten. He hid it behind his back automatically as he inched open the door. "uh, no... but i don't much like this dress, it looks dumb..."

"WOW YOU LOOK PRETTY THOUGH." The top was really pretty, especially with the ecto. "THERE ARE FLAWS WITH THIS ONE TOO, BUT JACK ROSE THOUGHT UP A PLAN TO MAKE THE DRESS LOOK BETTER. HE WENT TO GET A CORSET FOR ME. MAYBE HE CAN HELP WITH THE PARTS YOU DON'T LIKE TOO?"

"well, i dunno, maybe..." He fidgeted. "i just don't think i like this one anyway, so i'll put on the next one and we'll see."

"OKAY. I'M GOING TO WAIT FOR JACK ROSE TO BRING ME THE CORSET."

"yeah, okay." He closed the door again and started pulling off the atrocity.

Jack Rose returned with a simple corset, smooth in the front. "will this do, sweetie?"

"YES, THANK YOU." Berry took it with a thankful smile. He went back to the dressing room. The next dress was in silver with dark royal blue accents. It came high in the front and back. It was sleeveless, so he took the wrap from the other dress to cover his arms.

Red put on his second one, an a-line with a high waist and red flowers and lace on the bottom, strapless. It was... Alright. But he was still self-conscious of his mitten as he came creeping out to show them both.

Berry looked at himself in the mirror, happy that the hole in his chest wasn't noticeable. He ran his hand down the smooth material. The corset made him look normal, and it helped fill in the breast area as it was padded a bit, giving him a nicer shape. He came out into the open area and saw RedHe smiled happily; Sans will love to see this, "WOWIE RED YOU LOOK GREAT."

Red was blushing brightly, but he smiled a little. "thanks..."

"do i take pictures this time?" Jack Rose asked, waving Berry's phone.

"Yes," Berry giggled and took red's arm and pulled them over to the little stage with the mirrors and lights. "ONE TOGETHER AND THEN ONE EACH."

"oh, okay-" Red let himself get pulled, nearly tripping. "careful, the train's long."

"yes, you don't want to rip a seam, sweetie." Jack Rose said. He took a picture as the woman came back over.

"You both look great! Don't you want to try on some gloves?"

Red grimaced and hid his mitten again. "i can't..."

"DO YOU HAVE ONE OF THE FURRY TUBE THINGS I’VE SEEN HUMANS PUT THEIR HANDS IN?" Berry asked

"I'm sorry?" the woman asked, tilting her head. "Furry tube?"

"...a fur muff?" Jack Rose asked.  
"Oh! Oh yes, we have those!" She nodded. "Will it be a winter wedding, then?"

"well, uh," Red said. "i was thinking it'd be in the summer, or something, but, eh, the heat won’t bother me..."

"I THINK YOU'LL LIKE IT RED. THEY LOOK REALLY SOFT." Berry said happily. He always wanted to touch one. Just a quick touch, like with the comforter, to please the omega within him and his curiosity. He worked his bandana he was still wearing, feeling the softness of it and Howl's scent.

"i dunno, maybe.."

"Let me get you one," the woman said, and went off again. Jack Rose took a few more pictures before she came back with a muff, which Red slowly took.

"huh... kinda comfy..."

"RED.” Berry fingered his bandana for courage to ask quietly, "CAN I PET IT?"

"yeah, sure you can, berry." He held it out with a smile.

Berry reached out a slightly trembling hand and gently let his phalanges glide over the soft fur. "IT'S SO SOFT," he said, amazed. His bones ached as he thought of a nest line in it. He pulled his hand away. "THANK YOU. WE SHOULD TRY ON THE NEXT DRESS." He went towards the dressing room.

"yeah, it's actually pretty cool," Red said. "but can i use it with only one hand...?"

"i don't see why not," Jack Rose hummed. "but if it's too big, and you want to, um... hide your hand? i could add a pocket, too."

"oh! yeah! that... that'd be good. yeah. actually, please do." Red nodded quickly, and Jack Rose smiled and nodded back.

"alright. go on, try the next one."

"okay." Red took the muff off to hand over, then went to change into his next dress as well.

Berry’s next dress was in icy blue with rhinestone sparkles as the blue faded to white at the top. But it was low in the font. It just barely covered the corset, so it showed off his scared clavicle, but on the plus side it had sleeves! Berry was happy about that. He walked out into the open area with a smile. "WHAT DO YOU THINK?"

Jack Rose looked it over, humming. "it looks nice... but i think the other one would be easier to work with to make sleeves and still cover, ah, that mark."

His hand went to the mark left from his last correction, covering it. "THE SILVER AND BLUE ONE?" he asked.

"yes. it was really nice, and i think i can easily find the right material to make sleeves for it. it shouldn't be too expensive or time-consuming."

"ALRIGHT.” He smiled. "THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR DOING THIS. YOU’RE AMAZING. "

"aw." He blushed, waving a hand a little. "it's nothing. you guys are my new friends, and it's a wedding. you should look your best!"

Berry smiled happily and blushed. "YOU ARE VERY KIND." He was a little lost for words, so he knocked on Red's door. "HOW IS THE NEW DRESS, RED?"

"it's nothing like that..." He shrugged.

There was a long pause, but then the door cracked open. "sorry i'm just a little, uh, emotional, gimme a sec."

"OKAY," Berry looked around and found a box of tissues and rushed it over. Not used to long skirts, he tripped over the skirt.

Before he could hit the ground, Jack Rose caught him, strong arms gently grasping at Berry's shoulders. "careful, don't..." He paused, reconsidered the sultry line he was about to say, then gently straightened Berry back up. "don't rip the dress, sweetie. walk slowly."

Berry let out a sign of relief; he was heading straight into the table. "THANK YOU, JACK ROSE. YOU'RE A LIFESAVER." He took the box in one hand and pulled the dress up with the other hand. He knocked on the door. "RED, I GOT YOU SOME TISSUES."

"you're welcome." He smiled. Red poked back out and took the tissues and closed the door again. There was obnoxious snuffling and blowing and dabbing.

"I HOPE THEY'RE HAPPY TEARS." Berry rubbed his bandana uncertainly.

"yeah! they're happy tears!" A bit more blowing and dabbing before Red came carefully walking out. The dress was long and elegant, sleek, mostly white with just a bit of red lacing. The sleeves were sheer, and the neckline was tastefully high, but still gently curved. He looked nervously happy, gripping the bottom a little. "i like this one..."

"you're gorgeous!" Jack Rose exclaimed.

"OOH RED YOU LOOK BEAUTIFUL!" Berry teared up a bit, "LET'S A PICTURE."

"y-yeah, okay. yeah." He got up onto the little podium. Jack Rose took several pictures.

"do you like it how it is? or do you want more red?"

"uh, more red would be really cool, but i like it already."

Jack Rose beamed. "then i'll see what i can do, sweetie~"

After Jack Rose took some pictures, Berry went to stand by Red and took a few with him. "SO WE ARE GETTING THIS AND THE SILVER AND BLUE ONE?"

"yeah." Red was having trouble not tearing up again. "i want this one."

"Oh, wonderful!" The woman came back over, beaming. "We'll get your measurements and make sure your specific dresses are perfectly tailored! I'm so glad you found dresses you liked!"

Red nodded wordlessly.

Berry's soul felt light and happy. "I'LL TAKE THE SILVER ONE TOO." He held out his credit card. "PLEASE CHARGE THEM ON HERE."

"Of course."

When all the measurements were taken, and they were paid for, Red and Berry got back into their usual clothes. Red gently bullied Jack Rose into leaving his number and promising to bring in his portfolio to the shop, and then they headed out of the store to get back on the bus.

Berry took his phone back out and texted Howl and Daemon. It had been a few hours. [HELLO MY LOVES. DRESS SHOPPING WENT WELL! WE’RE TAKING THE BUS BACK. LOVE YOU!]

Howl texted back quickly. [GLAD TO HEAR IT, SEE YOU SOON. WE LOVE YOU TOO.]

Berry smiled happily. "THIS HAS BEEN A REALLY FUN DAY. I'M SO HAPPY WE RAN INTO YOU, JACK ROSE."

"yeah, this has been very nice," Jack Rose agreed shyly. "thank you."

They got onto the bus when it came. This time, Berry got a few dirty looks from some Swap monsters. "Sully," one hissed as they passed to sit somewhere.

Berry bowed his head meekly on reflex. He made sure his bandana was covering his sully collar. "LET'S SIT IN THE BACK."

Red's semi-blissed expression soured, and he nodded, pulling them to the back. Jack Rose followed, confused.

"what does that mean, sully...?"

Berry worked Howl's collar to let his angel's love and scent keep him calm and help him drown out the voice and not listen to it's lies. "in swap culture, it's a dirty omega," Berry said quietly.

"dirty?" he repeated, surprised.

"kinda like a sexual deviant, except... it's never their fault, they all get... forced." Red said quietly. Jack Rose bristled. Then a cold smile spread on his face and he got right back up, walking up to the row with the swap monster who spoke. The monster, a rat, stiffened up.

"What?"

"is this seat taken?" Jack Rose delicately perched on the monster's lap without waiting for an answer, ignoring the sputters of the rat. "i didn't think so~ how kind of you~ aren't you just the sweetest~"

Berry's eyelights guttered out. "red... red... they're going to hurt him." He squeezed the bandana hard. He took shaky breaths. "PLEASE DON'T LET THEM HURT HIM."

Red took Berry's hand, squeezing gently. "hold on... let's see what happens."

The rat was flushed, nose twitching, glaring. "G-get off me! Freak!"

"now, now... that's not very nice..." Jack Rose tsked. "let's be polite, sweetie. i don't think anyone on this bus is a freak..." He leaned in, cupping the rat's cheek, their mouths centimeters apart. "...except you, baby. yeah, you like it rough, huh? you wanna play with me, sweetie? i'll show you freaky."

The rat jerked back, balling up a fist and swinging it - and Jack Rose caught it with one hand with a quiet clack, his grip was bruising on the Swap monster's wrist. He leaned up and closer, whispering right into the rat's ear, too quiet to be heard over the noisy bus. The rat's fur all stood on end, his body trembling.

"Okay! Okay, I'm sorry! Stop!" He yanked the cord to make the bus stop desperately.

Jack Rose threw the rat’s other arm to the side and got up, backing away. The rat jumped up and ran to the front of the bus, slamming into the dash. As soon as the doors opened, he was gone, darting down the sidewalk.

Jack Rose sat back down at the back with Red and Berry, languidly stretching out.

Berry held on to Red's hand, terror-stricken. Jack Rose came back to them. His soul felt like it was going to fall out of his chest. "WHY DID YOU DO THAT? YOU COULD HAVE BEEN HURT. WHAT IF..... WHAT IF HE WAS TEMPTED?"

He didn't look bothered, stretching and absently smoothing out the fur of his jacket. "he couldn't hurt me, i'm too fast. and as for tempting... well, that was the point, sweetie."

"what did you say to him?" Red asked, squeezing Berry's hand again.

"oh, nothing too important. only what i did to the last person who claimed it was a victim's fault they got raped. funny, he was interested in freaks, but he didn't seem keen on what i had in mind..."

Berry took some deep breaths. "THANK YOU FOR STICKING UP FOR ME, JACK ROSE. YOUR VERY BRAVE." Berry could never think about trying what the other monster had done, standing up to the Swap monster. Jack Rose was brave and seemed to have skills to back his bravado, yet he didn't want to chance it. "BUT I DON'T WANT YOU IN DANGER BECAUSE OF ME."

"you're welcome, but don't worry, i wasn't in danger. and it wasn't just for you." He stuck his hands in his pockets. "i can't stand victim-blaming... it makes me angry, but honestly... that was tame compared to what tai would have done, if he were here."

"YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE A PROBLEM. YOU HAVE AN ID THAT SAYS YOU’RE NOT SWAP AND YOU DON'T HAVE A SULLY COLLAR." Berry squeezed his bandana. "YOU HAVE RIGHTS. IF SOMEONE REPORTS YOU TO THE GUARDS, THEY CAN'T TAKE YOU FOR TEMPTING. BUT YOU STILL SHOULD BE CAREFUL."

"don't worry about me, sweetie," Jack Rose hummed. "i know exactly what i'm doing."

"it's ok, berry." Red patted Berry's hand. "we don't know what he's capable of, but i'm sure he does. he's lasted this long, yeah?"

Berry nodded, taking more deep breaths. "OKAY.." He inhaled his Angel's wonderful calming grape scent. It reminded him of Howl drinking some fragrant wine. The image was like a sedative on his nerves. "OKAY..." His hand stopped squeezing the bandana and he petted it, letting the softness also comfort him. "LET'S TALK ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE. DO YOU LIVE AROUND HERE?"

Jack Rose relaxed, barely perceptible. "we haven't found housing yet," he admitted. "we only got here late last night. from what i understand, an old, abandoned apartment complex is being hurriedly furnished with sleeping bags and blankets for a night or two while all of the..." He waved a hand. "political things and documentation gets done."

"IT WAS LIKE THAT FOR US TOO, BUT IT DIDN'T TAKE LONG TO GET DONE AND THEY HAVE MORE PRACTICE DOING IT. IT SHOULD BE VERY FAST. YOU GOT ID ALREADY TOO. THEY’RE GETTING VERY GOOD AT IT."

"yeah, we got ours early in the morning and just spent the time until you found me learning what things are like."

The bus arrived at their stop, and Red got up. Berry got up too. His arm hooked on to his brother-in-law's, and smiled kindly. "LET US KNOW IF YOU NEED ANYTHING OR NEED HELP GETTING SETTLED IN."

"oh, yes, i will." He followed them out, texting his brother, and stopped on the sidewalk near that first bridal shop. "my brother will come grab me from here, so... i'll talk to you guys later?"

"yeah. and you and tai are invited, this saturday, five o clock,” Red said.

Berry nodded happily. "I WILL SEND A TEXT TO YOU WITH THE ADDRESS."

"alright." Jack Rose smiled and waved at them. Red waved back, then ported Berry back home.

"by the way... you didn't have to pay for the dress," Red mumbled when they were in Howl's living room. "i put money aside."

"IT'S THE JOB OF THE BRIDE'S FAMILY TO PAY FOR THE DRESS. STRETCH AND VEX ALREADY AGREED TO IT." He smiled brightly. "SO DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT."

"they did?" He rubbed his chin. "i mean... eh, i'm gonna need the money when my student loans kick in, so... alright." He huffed a little. "i feel bad though."

"DON'T THIS IS OUR GIFT TO YOU. YOU DESERVE WONDERFUL THINGS." Berry held his arms open for a hug.

"well... alright." He hugged Berry tightly. "thank you. you're the coolest brother-in-law ever."

"NO." Berry blushed. He had a hard time believing that. Everyone in his family was so amazing and Red had gone back to school. Berry hadn't graduated anything. "THAT'S YOU! YOU'RE COOL AND SMART AND KIND."

"you shush your mouth, berry, you are the best," he said stubbornly. He pulled back and patted Berry's shoulder. "alright, i'm gonna head home. don't show sansy the dress i got, ok? only the other one."

Berry blushed brighter. "HAVE A GREAT DAY RED. I WON'T SHOW HIM. IS IT OKAY TO SHOW HOWL AND DAEMON?"

"you too. and no, don't show anyone. only the one i didn't buy. it's a surprise."

"ALRIGHT. i'LL KEEP THEM TO MYSELF UNTIL AFTER THE WEDDING."

"thanks, berry. see ya around." He waved, then ported away.

Berry sighed, and called out. "I'm home." and went to look for Daemon and Howl. They greeted him with warm smiles, and the rest of the day was spent relaxing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary: Lust monsters were freed from their underground, and Howl is wary of them despite their queen assuring the public they will be respectful of people's boundaries. Berry and Red go bridal dress shopping, and they meet the Lust Sans, Jack Rose, outside the shop looking in nervously. Jack Rose flirts with them both, flustering Red, before Red says they're both taken. Jack Rose stops flirting and congratulates them. Red warns him not to talk about sexual things around the other skeletons. Jack Rose's brother (the Papyrus), Tai, arrives and Jack Rose gives him the same warning. Berry mentions they're going bridal dress shopping and invites the newcomers. Tai bullies his brother into going in with them and leaves them to it. Jack Rose tries to hang back inside, but Berry and Rose gently coax him into helping, revealing he has quite a bit of designer and dress knowledge, and Tai pops in to add he designed both of their outfits. A racist human tries to make Jack Rose wait outside, and Red flips him off and drags them all out, assuring Jack Rose they want his help. They take the bus to a different shop, and Jack Rose shows them his notebook full of cut outs and hand-drawn designs of dresses, and explains how he could help modify the dresses. They arrive at a more monster-friendly bridal shop, and start shopping around. Berry's first dress reveals the hole in his ribs, which he shows to Jack Rose, who assures him he could wear a corset underneath his dress to hide it, and sleeves to hide the scars. Red doesn't like his first dress, so they both try on a new one. Berry very much likes the second dress he tries on, and Red likes his okay, so they take pictures. But Red doesn't want to reveal his broken hand, so Berry suggests a fur muff to hide both in, and Jack Rose also offers to sew a pocket in, cheering him up. They each try on a new one. Berry and Jack agree on his second dress, and Red cries in emotion of his third and decides to get it after showing it. On the bus ride back, a Swap monster calls Berry 'sully,' and Jack Rose finds out what that means. He then proceeds to aggressive-seduce the swap monster in question, and threaten him, causing him to run out of the bus when it stops. Berry is terrified of him getting hurt, but he assures he can defend himself just fine, and his brother Tai would have done even worse to a victim-blamer. Red and Berry invite him and Tai to the next family game night, and Red takes Berry home. Red says Berry didn't have to pay for the dresses, but Berry assured that Stretch and Vex agreed because the bride's family is to pay. They hug and Red heads home.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading, kudos and commenting!


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